recently, i received an email from somebody who was looking at options for ministry. in other words, looking at ways to serve others from underneath the church umbrella...
"there is so much I want to do but I have to be reasonable."
reasonable.
yep, good call... GREAT call.
see, anytime dialogue starts to move progressively towards the realization of dreams and visions, there is a phantom that lurks in the shadows, whispering words of fear and caution. now, whereas caution is typically prudent and constructive, fear is usually just constrictive.
the phantom:
burnout
we've all seen it happen- somebody great and in all ways talented climbs into ministries and straps in, taking on too much in their passion and enthusiasm to the point of eventually needing to pull the safety pin on the ejection seat and be jettisoned to safety...
far from the plane that has gone down,
not having been blown apart by the enemy,
but simply having stalled in the air.
reasonable.
yep, good call. GREAT call.
it was amidst this dialogue that i offered the 'reason' below:
yes, i recognize this... it often happens to people who have many gifts in many areas.
i feel your pain. eventually i realized that some things had more draw than others, although all were interesting expressions of who i am in Christ. i imagine there are similar waves for you, so, apart from the obvious answer which is 'EVERYTHING'...
what do you actually want to do?
put another way: what floats your boat? what do you want to do most?
another thing to look at is the difference between project ministries and ongoing ones. all carry a time commitment, certainly, and all require massive investments of who you are in Christ for an eventual yielding of rich spiritual fruit. however, some things are ongoing and require you to be 'on call' so to speak, whereas others the art project or the photography module have a specific intensive period and then they are done. the distinction is important to your own personal balance and ultimate survival!
then there are the things that people ask you to do because they seem like a good fit, but which don't need to be done by you. gotta factor those in by factoring them right out again. if you are doing a ministry that is not yours, then one of two things is probably taking place:
a) you're taking someone's spot
b) you are giving up your spot in something else in order to do this
cut that stuff free.
if it is of God, God will send another to attend to the need-
one whom God has called to this purpose.
you can only do what you can do...
likewise, i suppose, you should only do what you should do...
3 comments:
"then there are the things that people ask you to do because they seem like a good fit, but which don't need to be done by you."
that's a good statement.
"you can only do what you can do...likewise, i suppose, you should only do what you should do..."
so very true. there's so much we can do, but it's not a question of being able to do something or even wanting to do something, but instead a matter of what His plan is and us not being a hindrance to that.
thanks for the very timely reminder...
i agree, the 'should do' bit is a discernment thing.
the challenge is to be praying 'without ceasing.' i mean, we've all heard those words before and many of us even know how the address of that verse without the aid of a concordance. but what does paul mean in 1 Thessalonians 5.16-21 when he says
"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good."
there's a bunch of great stuff there. although paul was not always the most optimistic, he could never be accused of not being real. so when he speaks such positive words, i guess we must presume that he is being just as real as when he's 'calling it like it is.'
i can't help but notice that there is all this encouragement here to include the Holy Spirit when dealing with prophetic words and signs that often come when we spend time in 'continual prayer.'
something that we, in our busy 21st centry western mindset and lifestyle, struggle with is listening- especially during prayer. perhaps all of the direction of the Holy Spirit comes when we are ceaselessly listening for a word, rather than giving God our list.
1 Thessalonians 5 is a really rich passage. Paul spoke many positive statements throughout. it's a good chapter to remind us not only about prayer and the Holy Spirit, but also about how we need to live and treat each other.
"something that we, in our busy 21st centry western mindset and lifestyle, struggle with is listening- especially during prayer. perhaps all of the direction of the Holy Spirit comes when we are ceaselessly listening for a word, rather than giving God our list."
do you think it's the fact we aren't ceaselessly listening for the Holy Spirit's promptings? i'm simply speaking from my experience, that in order to be able to listen, you have to first learn to stop, be still and quiet. once that place is found, then there's a hope of listening ceaselessly, because the focus is completely His.
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