abiding in His branches because that’s ministry

Life is ministry and ministry is life.

 

Your life is your ministry and your ministry is your life.

 

Read it again.

 

You read it too fast, read it again, SLOWLY.

 

 

What does that mean to you?

 

 

To me, it means that ministry is not one way of doing things, but it is as colorful and vast in its ways as the numerous colors of a rainbow after a storm. 

 

Ministry is not just one way of doing things.

 

Unfortunately, a typical Christian believes ministry, being a missionary especially, does look one way. 

 

I challenge it. I challenge you to think beyond, because if you believe in a God that created billions of uniquely different people all rolled into one story, not to mention He created a hecking lot of other incredible things, and you believe ministry can only be a certain way, you, my friend, need some Jesus time. 

 

I was challenged to rethink ministry these last few years. One way was working with horses. I can teach about God first and apply what I am teaching my kids about horses to God. It actually isn’t worth teaching about horses if I am not teaching about God. What’s the point?

 

I asked Jesus, “how will they know about you if I don’t immediately describe you?” 

He immediately said: “they will know Me by your love.”

 

Yessss, of course! Love! It is so simple. When I go to the market and teach my friends English words, I am love. When men from my hostel start conversations with me, I act and speak in love and honesty of what I am doing. I live in love, and love is God; therefore, they will wonder and the Spirit will move! Oh, the chills be coming!

 

I’m going to be honest with you. My gifting is not evangelism. I stink at starting conversations, and I hardly ever feel called to go out anywhere. Saying that makes me squirm because I am on a mission trip, and there is an “expectations” list to missionaries. 

Evangelism is just not how God created me to be. Sure, getting out and stretching and gaining more gifts is amazzzzing, and something I do seek growing in, but you know where God has me thriving, where my heart lies: in the hostels and the markets, life things. I don’t like coffee, why would I try to connect with someone who does? I don’t like shopping, what would motivate me to start spending money now? 

Yes, they are all children of God and need Jesus, but if God is trying to spread His Kingdom, don’t you think He will use the gifts He has given us? Yet He also doesn’t have to. He is God, of course and nothing is impossible to Him.

 

I thrive building relationships with the market ladies, being a light and that friendly person that buys their goods and helps them learn English while they let me practice my broken every language besides English. Some people are just downright nasty with market people, and I want them to have a good day and to smile and laugh a little a least.

I thrive in hostels because they are homey, and people love starting conversations with you (thanks, Jesus, for helping me out) and you can talk easily about who you are, what you are doing and what you believe and you don’t have to do a thing but live life, sit on a couch, play the guitar and toss string with a cat—it comes to you—then you have their instagrams, hopefully can remember their names (oh, I have issues with this), and you have gained so many friends and told them about Jesus—icing on the cake I can’t eat.

 

I answered the call to go, and I am in Kazakhstan this month.

I went.

And I listen, daily, to what He asks me to do.  

Some days He says “sit with me, today ministry is you”

Some days He says “go to the market and be a light”

Some days He says “stay”, and boyyyy the best stories come out of those days.

Some days He says “seek”, “listen”, or gives me cool visions.

Some days He says “let’s take a walk” and He leads me to a river, then tells me to talk to the market man and buy a kilo of plums, then brings me to a beautiful elderly lady with a cat.

Some days He tells me to speak, some days to be silent. 

 

Jesus says: “My sheep know Me by My voice and listen to Me”

 

Playing with Him, obeying, is the best because I know obeying Him is far better than living up to the expectations of the crowd. I’m just going where the shepherd tells me to and eating the grass He has brought to me.

 

Five fold gifting. Everyone has their role in the body, not everyone is the same and that is OK. Take a deep breathe, right now. Don’t forget to exhale please. 

The body cannot just have mouths. It needs ears and hands too. You can be who He created you to be cuz you are His will, not His mistake.

 

Team building exercise: where in the body do each of your teammates or family members, co workers, ext, play in and how can you best spread the gospel efficiently using each of the gifts each of your peeps brings to the table uniquely? Stop expecting each other to act like you (speaking to myself too, ya’ll). 

 

Jesus says: “I am the vine and you are the branches, whoever abides in me and I in him or her will bear much fruit, but without me, you can do nothing.”

 

Abide

 

Listen

 

Obey