Tuesday, May 05, 2009

Obligation vs. Willingness

"Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, serving as overseers - not because you

must but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to

serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the

Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of glory that will never fade away."

1 Peter 5:2-4

- - -

We who are called into the ministry must always remember that we are here to serve. We are to

follow Christ's example of being a servant-leader. Times will come when, because of being too

self-sacrificing, we feel pompous and proud of our "humility." Then when we see our members

not catching up to our standards, we look at them disdainfully and immediately judge them for

not being as "holy and righteous" as we are. This should not be; instead, we must look at them

with compassion and help them to be strong in their faith.

There will also be times when too much ministry commitments become too much of a routine.

Then we dread going from one ministry commitment to the other. We are just so burned out. But

we must remember that we should do our call not because we must, but because we are willing.

If the willingness is gone, how can we become effective ministers?

*

Lord, I pray that as I continue serving you (I'm in this for life), make my every waking moment

an exciting one, eager to make an impact for You and influence the people around me to know

You.

Posted by zarahlim at 7:02 PM 0 comments

Labels: ministry, preaching thoughts, quotes