Discovering Your Ministry

you know by now that it’s our desire to become a church in which every member is a minister – where every single person is involved in fruitful, impassioned service

the first step in creating a church around the concept of lay ministry is to teach on this subject

for the last four sermons, I’ve taught on the subject of spiritual gifts and why our church must become a church in which every member is a minister

I agree with John MacArthur, who says: "No local congregation will be what it should be, what Jesus prayed that it should be, what the Holy Spirit gifted and empowered it to be, until it understands spiritual gifts"

so the first step is teaching

but the next step in creating a church around the concept of lay ministry is to align the believers in the church with their spiritual gifts

to take those who are fired up and ready to serve God using their gifts to discover what those gifts are in their rightful place of ministry

let me tell you what happens in the average church

Bill Hybels talks about an imaginary pastor named Bob – a good guy

and about every June, all his volunteers resign because they’re going to the cottage

and about every August, Pastor Bob realizes that he’s got to fill all these positions for them to start up again in the fall

so after a few years, he commits every August to what he calls August recruitment wars

he goes to war with his congregation to motivate, influence, or guilt-tip people to fill these positions

first week in August, his sermon is titled "Whatever Happened to Commitment?"

he preaches on how we live in a commitment-free culture

and says, "If you want to show your commitment, go out to the lobby and sign up, because we’ve got 15 positions that need to get filled"

well, some people say, "I’d like to think of myself as a committed person," and 5 people sign up

he’s feeling pretty good

the next Sunday rolls around, and he preaches on the subject, "Take up your cross and follow Christ"

he says, "There are things in life you want to do, and there are things you have to do. There are things in this church that just have to be done. Jesus said, ‘Take up your cross and follow me.’ I’m asking you to pick up the pencil in the lobby and sign up for whatever. Deny yourself."

that motivates some people, and 5 more sign up

he’s doing pretty good – only 5 people left, and he’s got two weeks

but he’s not taking any chances

the next week, he reads his entire sermon from the Foxe’s Book of Martyrs

he says, "This is the way our ancestors served Christ. There were people sawn in half for the cause of Christ. There were people burned at the stake. All I’m asking you to do is to sign up for one year. So you get up there and sign up!"

well, at the end of that Sunday he’s got only one slot left – the third-grade Sunday School teacher

so on week four, he brings up little Mary Jane

she’s a third-grade member of that Sunday School class

he takes her up to the pulpit and says, "Mary Jane, what grade are you in?"

"Mary Jane, what’s it going to feel like for you and your little friends down there to be sitting down there all alone without a teacher?"

"Pretty awful, Pastor Bob"

"Well, Mary Jane, isn’t it true that without a teacher you turn to things like drugs and alcohol and prostitution and that sort of thing?"

finally, there’s a business guy at the end who fended off everything else

the pastor says, "You don’t have to like kids, you don’t have to know how to teach, but we need you to sign up to teach Mary Jane"

the businessman runs out back, picks up the pencil, and signs up

Pastor Bob goes home that afternoon and says, "I won August recruitment wars"

now let’s think about the businessman when he goes to teach those third-grade girls

by the third Sunday, he’s asking, "Why did I do this? I can’t teach! I don’t like kids!"

about the same week, the girls in his class are asking, "What’s he doing here?"

and that’s how the average church gets people involved in ministry

there’s a better way

we don’t want to guilt-trip and manipulate you into a place of service

we want you to realize that there’s a better way to minister – a way that will bring you fulfillment and effectiveness

if you are not fruitful in ministry, you are probably doing things that God never intended you to do

you haven’t found that unique place of service that God designed you for

it might be that many of you are frustrated because you’ve been appointed to a ministry, but you’re not cutting it

you know it, and everyone else knows it

I’m telling you, don’t give up, because God does have a place for you in ministry that will be rewarding, fulfilling, and effective

we just have to find it

when God created animals, he gave each of them a specific area of expertise

some animals run, some hop, some swim, some burrow, and some fly

each animal has a particular role to play based on the way they were shaped by God

the same is true with humans

each of us was uniquely designed and shaped by God to do certain things

we are to be wise stewards of our lives, and this begins by understanding that you are unique

you are a wonderfully complex composite of many different factors

and what God has made you to be will determine what God wants you to do

your makeup determines your ministry

what do we want to avoid?

we want to avoid doing things that God never designed us to do

we need to avoid areas of ministry in which we know that God has never given us abilities, interest, or passion

because when we are in a role and our gifts don’t match, we feel like a square peg in a round hole

we become frustrated, and so do others

it produces limited results, and is an enormous waste of our time, talents, and energy

an officer reported to General Marshall during World War II that a commander in the field was incompetent

he wanted to know what to do

the general gave the command to have the commander removed immediately

the officer quickly responded, "But who will replace him?"

General Marshall looked straight at the officer and firmly said, "Who we get to replace him is the second issue. Our first responsibility is to fulfill the trust given to us by the government, families, and the soldiers under his command. We cannot let someone known to be incompetent remain in their position"

General Marshall went on to say, "The fact that the commander is not competent for the position is not so much a criticism of the individual as it is of the leaders who placed him there."

and he concluded: "It is now our responsibility to find where that commander is competent and put him there."

this morning I want to give you five questions that will help you discern your place of ministry

these questions aren’t original with me, but I have found them to be very helpful in discovering where I should be serving

this morning’s message is designed to help those of you who don’t know where you should be serving to discover your place of ministry

I must warn you that it’s not always easy

many times, it will involve trial and error

but five questions will help you in discovering your ministry here at Richview Baptist Church

QUESTION NUMBER ONE: WHAT IS YOUR SPIRITUAL GIFT?

this might seem redundant after what we’ve talked about these past weeks, but one person told me last week that she was more discouraged than ever, because out of the 21 spiritual gifts that I described last week, she didn’t think she had any

I want to give you three clues that will help you answer the first question, "What is your spiritual gift?"

the first step is education

educate yourself on this topic

read 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4, and 1 Peter 4

pick up a good book on the subject – such as What You Do Best in the Body of Christ by Bruce Bugbee

participate in the Network course that we will be leading in the new year

but educate yourself on this subject

the second step is experimentation

get involved in people’s lives

try different things in ministry

I’m convinced that many spiritual gift tests never spot a gift because a person has never experimented in ministry

look for ways to serve other people within the church in a way that is consistent with your personality and passion

but just get moving

someone has said it’s a lot easier to steer a moving truck than one that is parked, and it’s a lot easier to steer you into fruitful ministry once you get moving and experimenting with different things

the third step is evaluation

evaluate your feelings

ask yourself, "Do I feel fulfilled serving God and others in this way?"

look at the results

if you see fruit for your labor, it just might be that you are gifted in that area

ask others what gifts they see in you

educate, experiment, and evaluate – these will lead you to answer in a right way the question, "What is my spiritual gift?"

QUESTION NUMBER TWO: WHAT IS YOUR HEART?

what passion has God given you? what makes your heart beat faster within the church?

as a young man, I sensed God moving me into pastoral ministry, and I came across a verse that changed my whole way of thinking

(1 Timothy 3:1) Here is a trustworthy saying: If anyone sets his heart on being an overseer, he desires a noble task.

I realized that it was perfectly legal, even good, to desire, reach out for, aspire to a certain area of ministry

in all likelihood, if God has given you a passion for a certain area of ministry, God has given you gifts in that area as well

without a doubt, God has given you a passion for a certain area of ministry within the church

some come and talk with me about children’s ministry – their heart gets so excited when it comes to children, and they can barely stop from weeping

others talk about ministry to the poor, and finding opportunities to help those who are impoverished or suffering

others get excited about reaching the lost

what is your heart?

what passion has God given you?

QUESTION NUMBER THREE: WHAT ARE YOUR ABILITIES?

I talked the other week about the relation between spiritual gifts and natural abilities

only believers have spiritual gifts, but everybody has natural abilities

but in the life of a believer, it’s sometimes hard to tell the difference between a spiritual gift and a natural ability, for as John Stott says, "The God of creation is the same as the God of the new creation"

so ask yourself: what natural abilities do you have?

if you are musical, you can use your musical abilities within the church

if you teach, maybe you can teach within the church

if you have leadership experience, God can use that leadership responsibility within the church

look at the apostle Paul

before he became a believer, he was educated in philosophy and rhetoric

and after his conversion, how did he serve God?

using his natural abilities in argumentation, logic, and rhetoric

God can take whatever your natural abilities are, and use them within the church

QUESTION NUMBER FOUR: WHAT IS YOUR PERSONALITY?

it’s obvious that God does not use a cookie-cutter to create people

God loves variety

he made introverts and extroverts

he made some people thinkers and other people feelers

he made some people love routine and some people love variety

he designed some to love working in a team, and others to love working alone

the amazing thing is that God uses all types of personalities

Peter was outgoing and brash

Paul was dogmatic, reflective, and not always easygoing

and there is no right or wrong personality – God can use everyone

but your personality will affect how and where you use your spiritual gifts

for instance, two people might have the gift of evangelism, but one is introverted and one is extroverted

the way their gift of evangelism will be expressed is going to differ based on their personality

that is why your ministry will be unique

you can never mimic or duplicate the ministry of someone else, because God has given you a completely unique personality that nobody else has

Judy Garland once said, "Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else"

so ask yourself, what is my personality?

because when you minister in a way that is consistent with the personality God has given you, you will experience incredible fulfillment

LAST QUESTION: WHAT EXPERIENCES HAS GOD BROUGHT INTO YOUR LIFE?

what background has God given you that can help the church?

somebody has said, "God never wastes an experience"

it may be that God has given you some education that can be used in the church

God might have given you some vocational experience that can carry over to ministry within the body

what spiritual experiences have you had? what ministry experience?

and what painful experiences has God brought into your life that you have learned from, and can use now in ministry?

these five questions can be shortened to the acronym S.H.A.P.E. – spiritual gifts, heart, abilities, personality, and experiences

and they just might help you find a place of ministry that fits you perfectly

two warnings: never think you don’t belong

(1 Corinthians 12:21) The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!"

(1 Corinthians 12:22) On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,

(1 Corinthians 12:23) and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty,

(1 Corinthians 12:24) while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it,

(1 Corinthians 12:25) so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.

you are needed in the church

there are no unimportant members in the church – we need you, and you do belong

another warning: don’t covet other people’s gifts or pretend to have gifts you don’t have

that’s why Paul wrote in Romans 12, while introducing the subject of spiritual gifts:

(Romans 12:3) For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.

don’t try to be somebody else, and don’t covet their gifts

be yourself

as we close, do you see the three possible problems with gifts in the church?

(1) abuse - too few people using too many gifts – they’re overloaded and worn out

(2) disuse – too many people in the church using too few gifts

(3) misuse – that’s when people are using the wrong gifts

I want you to imagine dying, and fifty years from now somebody comes up to you and says, "I want to thank you"

you reply, "I’m sorry, I don’t think I know you"

then they explain: "You were a lay minister at Richview Baptist Church. You served and sacrificed and built the church that reached me for Christ after I died. I’m in heaven because of you"

do you think your effort is worth that?

if I knew a more significant way to invest my life, I’d be doing it

there is nothing you can do with your life that is more significant than joining Richview, getting involved in ministry, and serving Christ by serving others

the effect of your ministry will outlast by far your career, hobby, or anything else you do

in the 19^th century, it was a layman and not the ordained clergy that took more people to heaven with him than any other person

his name was D.L. Moody

he was a businessman who never was ordained

he just started using his gifts

and the 20^th century is almost over, some people say that Bill Bright, who’s not ordained, will have been responsible for more conversions than anyone else

God can use you in a way you haven’t imagined to make an eternal difference, all because you discovered your ministry and served God in a way that nobody else can

let’s pray

Lord Jesus, thank you for the fact that you so much believe in us, you let us use our gifts for your glory

may this be a church where ever person is a minister

and every minister uses their gifts

in Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Discovering Your Ministry