Ministry

“You’ve reached the highest level of ministry that a woman can go.” I was only 22 years old when I was told this, and frankly, I was disappointed. I always assumed that when I reached the “highest level of ministry” that I would have felt fulfilled, overjoyed, and like I was living the best life possible.

However, I felt empty, confused, and dissatisfied. It had taken only four and a half years to work my way up through the ministry ranks, and I could not fathom going the rest of my life knowing there was nothing greater I could do for God. I considered all the time I had spent trying to prove myself worthy of gaining more positions and titles. The church cleaner. Drummer. Secretary. Children’s Director. Youth Leader. You get the point. But with no more titles or positions to attain, what could I do?

I continued working as hard as possible to gain God’s approval to somehow let me do more. Instead of more doors opening, though, one day all those titles and positions disappeared. God had led me to the man who is now my husband and I moved out of state to join his church. His church had been established for many years and all the positions I held at my previous church were already filled there.

I struggled with God in prayer regarding my recent ministry “demotion”. “All that work, all that time, all those sacrifices I made to reach the peak of ministry, and for what?” I would pray. “God, please help me to understand. Have I fallen out of favor with you or is this just part of the new chapter of my life that is starting?”

God answered, and it was not what I expected. He showed me that my view of ministry was completely wrong. My view of ministry was rooted in pride about all that I was, and about all that I had done. He helped me understand that ministry is not a title. Ministry is not a position. Ministry is not a hierarchy. Ministry is knowing God, and making God known.

My pastor puts it this way: when you view ministry as a title or position, you set yourself up for disappointment because titles and positions can be changed and/or lost. However, when you see ministry as it really is, knowing God and making Him known, nobody can take your ministry from you.

So how does one reach the peak of ministry? Despite one popular belief, it does not mean working your way through the ministry titles until you have reached the title of Pastor or Bishop (or their spouse). What it does mean is that, on a day-to-day basis, you are putting your flesh into subjection to Christ, allowing His Word to change you and make you more like Him.

It also means going out and preaching the gospel. The Great Commission (Matthew 28:19, Mark 16:15), calls every believer to preach. That does not mean every believer will preach behind a pulpit. It does mean every believer should be witnessing to the lost. It does mean every believer should be sharing their testimony, leading people to Jesus through it. It does mean every believer should be teaching Bible studies. It does mean every believer should be serving others, being the light of Jesus to the world.

These two aspects are the fulfillment of the two great commandments Jesus spoke of in Matthew 22:37-40: “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

It also means acknowledging that the “peak” of one’s ministry is whatever their best is for that day. No Christian will ever be able to attain the level of holiness that God is, and since becoming as Christlike as possible is every believer’s calling, no Christian can ever make it to “the top” with nowhere else to climb. Likewise, no believer will ever attain the “peak” of soulwinning wherein they have achieved all they can possibly achieve, because the work of the Christian is not done until every person alive has heard the gospel.

Think about your view of ministry: Is it the biblical view of ministry? Are you striving to be more Christlike and to bring more people to Jesus, or are you striving for positions and titles? Are you open to God changing what you believe your calling is, or are you set that you are only open to the calling you are currently fulfilling and/or desiring to fulfill? Is what you consider to be your ministry something that can be changed or taken from you? Or is it something between you and God that cannot be touched? Have you asked God to reveal to you through His Word what ministry truly is? These questions, coupled with diligent study of the Bible, will help you reach your peak of ministry.