- Authors
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- Name
- Frank Powell
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Five years ago, I left a career as an engineer to serve the local church full-time. The first day, I walked into the church building giddy, like a school girl who just saw the finest dude ever. I think I skipped twice, then I noticed the lady cleaning the church building staring at me. Awkward.
I was so excited. Working full-time for the local church would be a never-ending honeymoon.
The honeymoon lasted like three months. I remember leaving the office one afternoon thinking, “What have I done? I didn’t sign up for this.” The demands of ministry were overwhelming. The demands of people were exhausting. Not to mention I was hanging out in an office most days. I mean, why are pastors in an office all day? Was I really supposed to read books and prepare classes for eight hours? What about the people?
Five years later, I still wonder why pastors are closed up in an office all day, but I love local church ministry. I embrace the opportunity to work for the bride of Jesus. Are there days I want to quit? Certainly. But, those thoughts don’t come nearly as often.
The path to this point wasn’t easy (the path moving forward won’t be easy either). But some truths about ministry would have helped me avoid a few potholes. These truths aren’t easy to accept, but they would have saved me nights of doubting and frustrations due to unmet (and unrealistic) expectations.
Here we go!
Here’s what I wish I knew when I got into ministry. If any church, anywhere, baptizes someone, every church wins. If your ministry helps people experience Jesus, every church wins. Why? You’re not primarily building your church. You’re primarily building THE church. And the church is larger than your physical location. The church is every man and woman gathered in every city, state and country across the world.
Rejoice with other pastors when they convert people to Jesus. Can you imagine what might happen if every church stopped competing against other churches and started competing against Satan?
1.) SATAN TARGETS EVERYONE, BUT HE’S ESPECIALLY TARGETING YOU.
Two weeks before transitioning into full-time ministry, I went through the darkest time of my life. Before this season, I never struggled with depression. It just wasn’t an issue for me. But as I agonized over whether to jump into ministry or remain an engineer, a cloud of darkness hovered over my mind. To this day, I have no explanation other than Satan. The day before I made the decision to quit my engineering job, the dark cloud dissipated. Here’s what I wish I knew before I got into ministry … while Satan targets everyone, he especially targets church leaders. In the gospels, Satan directly attacks two individuals … Jesus and Peter (that’s not to say he didn’t attack others, we’re just told explicitly about Jesus and Peter). In Matthew 5, Satan tempts Jesus in the wilderness. In Luke 22:31, Jesus tells Peter, “Satan has asked to sift you like wheat.” Jesus, whose death established the church, and Peter, the guy who built the church, are explicitly attacked by Satan. Coincidence? I think not. Satan hates God, so naturally he hates the bride of Jesus, the church. How do you destroy the bride of Jesus Christ? Remove those who lead it. If you’re in any type of leadership role in the church, that’s you. This shouldn’t scare you. The power in you is greater than the power in the world. Just be aware that you’re under attack.2.) DON’T DRAW A CROWD. MAKE DISCIPLES.
To be honest, drawing crowds isn’t difficult. If you appeal to the interests of other people, you will draw a crowd. And the cultural temptation to build a large ministry is strong. When pastors and church leaders ask you about your ministry, the first question will probably go something like this, “So how many people did you have Sunday?” Most of the voices around you say draw a crowd. Don’t listen to them. God doesn’t call you to draw a crowd. He calls you to make disciples. Discipleship is messy. It’s time-consuming. But it is the fruit of ministry. Who cares if your most recent event had 100 people? You had 1,000 people in worship last Sunday? So what? Are those people on a trajectory toward Jesus? Relentlessly, scandalously, unapologetically point people to Jesus. Self-seekers will leave. They left Jesus too. That’s OK. Don’t build a church of self-interested, self-centered people. That’s not a church. That’s a rotary club. Build a church of people on a path of self-denial. It’s the only path to true life.3.) GOD ISN’T IMPRESSED WITH YOUR EXHAUSTING SCHEDULE. REST.
The American ministry culture seems to equate exhaustion with faithfulness. “Man, I’m exhausted. I don’t have time for my family. I haven’t spent intimate time with God in weeks. But look at how many events are on the schedule.” I bought into the cultural pressure. My first two years in ministry I flooded the schedule with events. I wanted to schedule more events than any church around. At the end of year two, I almost left ministry. I was exhausted, burnt out and becoming increasingly cynical. Look, your peers might be impressed with your exhausting schedule. But God isn’t impressed. He doesn’t need your exhaustion. He needs your faithfulness. He needs you to trust him as the all-powerful God of the universe. Your ministry isn’t validated by the number of events on the schedule. This cultural expectation in the American church to fill the schedule with events needs to stop. Rest. Your ministry isn’t dependent on you.4.) NOT EVERYONE IN THE CHURCH WILL SHARE YOUR PASSION FOR JESUS.
When I started, I was pumped about teaching, discipling and building relationships with people, most of them Christians. I mean, who wouldn’t want to spend every day with sold out, committed followers of Jesus? It didn’t take long to realize sold out, committed followers of Jesus are the exception, not the rule. Instead of running ahead of the crowd, leading and guiding people as they run behind me, many days I feel like I’m behind the crowd, pushing and pleading for people not to give up. But here’s what I realized. God doesn’t place everyone on the same journey. People learn and grow at different speeds. If you expect everyone to instantly think, act and live like you, ministry will become burdensome. Instead of being cynical because not everyone is “sold out” like you, adopt the attitude of Jesus … take people where they are and lead them. Not everyone will share your passion for Jesus. Not all Christians are head-over-heels in love with Jesus like you. That’s why you’re in ministry. Help people taste a deeper, more intimate relationship with Jesus. Point them to the inexhaustible well of God’s grace, mercy, power and love. Remember, you’re only at this point because someone took you where you were and led you to Jesus.5.) MINISTRY ISN’T A COMPETITION.
I’m a recovering “competition addict.” Here’s a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Any idea that ministry is a competition is from Satan. God didn’t call you into ministry so you could build your church. He called you to build THE church. The competitive attitude of many church leaders cripples the church, both locally and globally. And while it’s great to point people to your ministry and invite people to join your church, it’s also entirely possible to build your church at the expense of building THE church.Don’t build YOUR church at the expense of THE church. Ministry isn’t a competition.