Yesterday, I wrote these two statements of encouragement to those in the ministry:
1.
You are blessed by God.
2.
Deepen your roots.
Today, I will share with you the remainder of this message for those on the front lines serving King Jesus.
3.
Be faithful in all seasons. There are seasons in ministry, as we mentioned in the devotional last Friday. Whether you are in the cold of Winter, the drought of Summer, the hopefulness of Spring, or the Fall of harvesting, be faithful at all times!
4.
Trust God. The reason we get anxious and upset and consider quitting is because we do not trust God. I know I am preaching to the choir, but faith still is the victory that overcomes the world.
Hebrews 11:6 says,
"But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." In a recent Jim Denison
Daily Article, he wrote about how we with blind faith get on an airplane and fully trust the pilots, the air traffic controllers, and the mechanics who built and service the airplane. We do not know any of them but trust them completely, or we would not get on the plane. But we do know God and have seen His faithfulness all over our lives, and yet, at times, we do not trust Him. We need to learn from and be more like the centurion in
Matthew 8:5-10 who said to Jesus that He did not need to come to his house to heal his sick young servant; He only needed to say the word. Now that is faith, and that impresses the Lord.
5.
Share the Gospel with everyone. If you need encouragement and motivation to keep going in the ministry, then tell a lost person about Jesus. It will reinvigorate you. One of my mentors said that when he got discouraged in the ministry, he would go to the shopping mall and find someone he could tell about Jesus.
6.
Learn from other pastors who are finishing well or have finished well, like Jimmy Draper. He is in his eighties and still going strong for Jesus. I wish every pastor could read his fine book,
Don't Quit Before You Finish: Serving Well and Finishing Strong.
7.
Allow others to invest in you, and you invest in others. I am blessed by the three men in my discipleship group that meets each Tuesday in my home. The devil likes us to be alone. But God wants us in a community where we can be blessed and also be a blessing to others.
Pastor, the Lord loves you. He called you. If He called you to it, then He will get you through it. Don't try to make things happen. Focus on being faithful to God in your ministry. He sees, and He will, in His time, bless and reward you. He may keep you where you are or move you to another place of ministry. I encourage you to pray to God and ask Him to put you where He can use you the most. It is a great prayer, but just know it will not look like what you think it will look like. It will be challenging and far better.
Have a blessed weekend. Thank you for all the prayers and support you give our DFEA ministry. We are grateful for you! If you would like to donate to support this work, please
click here.
If you have a prayer request, please send it to
pray@dfea.com, and I will pray for you!
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