Archive for the 'Pastors' Category
When Ministry Gets Tough
Ministry is not easy. It never has been nor will it ever be. Regardless of how you carry out God’s calling in ministry, at times, you to go through difficulty.
From the Voice of Experience
Since my college days, I have served as the pastor of a local church. From the simplest setting to the most complex setting, I have never found ministry easy. I am thankful for God’s call upon my life to the ministry of the Gospel, and I find enjoyment and fulfillment in it. And though I have found ministry seasons filled with unity and purpose, it is impossible to serve in ministry very long without experiencing some very tough times.
Therefore, I want to encourage you to remember four things when your next season of difficulty comes in ministry.
1. God is in control
I have faced some days when I forgot that God is in control. In those moments, I internalized the challenges and difficulties in ministry. This resulted in me withdrawing from others and experiencing a sense of loneliness. Upon occasion, my “ownership” of ministry set me back from God’s intention for me.
Through God’s Word and the power of the Holy Spirit, I was brought back to the realization that God is in control. This liberated me from the burden of ministry and freed me up to be all God wanted me to be. When we remember that our God reigns in and over all situations, including the tough times in ministry, we are liberated to realize God’s full-intended purpose for our lives and ministries.
2. God will see you through
Ministry is full of seasons. The secret to longevity in ministry is learning to surf the waves of ministry seasons. They are like the tide; they come and go, they rise and go down. When we forget this, tough days can be overwhelming.
But through it all, God will see you through. He will see you through days when your critics threaten you. He will see you through when people you love let you down. He will even see you through days where the ministry experiences loss rather than growth. Pastor and minister, God will see you through.
3. God is carrying out His purpose
We have no problem seeing God’s purpose when He uses us powerfully. We have little problem receiving good things from the hands of God. However, when we walk through tough times in ministry, His purpose and power is not always seen or felt by us. At times we wonder if God has forgotten us.
But know our God is always carrying out His purpose. Through your life and ministry, He is always working. He is humbling but deepening us. He is pruning but growing us. He is breaking but preparing us. Yes, our God is always working out His plan for our lives and ministries.
4. God is preparing you for the future
We just do not get it at times. We think so much about the present that we fail to shift our eyes to the future. While now is always important, God sees the end from the beginning.
Through tough times in ministry, God prepares you for the future. He knows where He is preparing you to go and what He wants you to do when He gets you there. He knows where you need to be personally in order to maximize you for the things He has prepared you to do publicly. God is preparing you for the future.
When You Face Tough Times Again
When you face tough times again in ministry, please remember:
- God is in control
- God will see you through
- God is carrying out His purpose
- God is preparing you for the future
Therefore, all is well.
Now is the Time to Lead,
Ronnie W. Floyd
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.
3 Powerful Promises When You Pray and Fast
There are many promises God makes in His Word in regard to the blessings we will receive through prayer and fasting. In my book The Power of Prayer and Fasting, I talk about seven specific promises. I want to mention three of them here that I trust will bless you as you read. I have seen each of these promises come true in my walk with God, and I’m confident they also can live in you, through you, and will be yours as you call on God to do His will in your life.
Promise 1: Prayer and Fasting Provides Freedom
When we pray and fast, God promises that He will liberate us. He will loose the chains of injustice. He declares that He’ll untie the cords of the yoke and will give the oppressed their long-awaited freedom. He will set us free from the bondage of what others think, making us realize that any comparison we make with others is a guaranteed fast track to misery. When we fast and pray, God steps in and frees us from the perceived alienation with Him that has kept us immobilized, fearful, and disobedient for so long. As you consider God’s call to fasting, perhaps for the first time, you may choose to start slowly, fasting and praying for only one day. Perhaps you’ll decide to fast and pray one day each week throughout the year where you declare that specific twenty-four hours as your time of obedience to be alone in the intimate presence of God. As you do, God will give you grace, comfort, and a new direction in your Christian walk. In the end you will be set free.
Promise 2: Prayer and Fasting Teaches us to Share
When we fast and pray, God teaches us how to share with those who have physical and spiritual needs. “Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?” (Isa. 58:7 NIV). The book of Proverbs complements this passage by reminding us that when we give to the poor, we lend to the Lord. Fasting and prayer put the self-life into perspective. You are never more like God than when you give. Prayer and fasting can build within you the character to give. Giving is a joy, and we need to be willing to pour ourselves out to those who can do nothing for us in life. We need to be willing to pour out ourselves to anyone, anytime, anywhere. This is the heart of Jesus, and it needs to be our heart. Prayer and fasting build within you the power to give.
Promise 3: Prayer and Fasting Leads us to Answered Prayer
As you pray and fast, you will call on God, and He will answer you. Answered prayer is the quintessence of praying and fasting. If I were to share with you the five or six pages of the prayer journal I prepared prior to my first forty-day fast, and then walk you back through my journal since then, you would see one thing: My prayers were answered. They are still being answered. There is something to the disciplines of prayer and fasting. I could point you to every experience of long-term fasting where God has answered my requests before Him. This does not mean they were answered as I preferred, but it did not matter. He had worked in my heart, and I was released, fully confident that God was ordering my way. When we humble ourselves before the Father, and when God sees we are serious about giving Him our broken spirits, He begins to do things we have never seen before. It’s empowering. It sensitizes us to the needs of others at home and overseas as we suddenly find ourselves quietly praying for people, events, and situations with the knowledge that our prayers not only will be heard but that the Father will answer them.
Now is the Time to Lead,
Ronnie W. Floyd
Parts taken from The Power of Prayer and Fasting by Ronnie W. Floyd. Copyright 2010. Used by permission of B&H Publishing Group. All rights reserved.
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.