Identify Ministry Opportunities
Ephesians 4:11-12
And he gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ
I love the local church. From my days as a young child to today, I love the local Body of Christ. If you’ve heard my testimony, you know that my dad was very sick all of his life. He suffered from a disease called Hemophilia that left him crippled, hospitalized often and constantly in pain. At a young age, Dad went on to Heaven with Jesus and today is pain free!!! At some point in the future I will write more about Dad, but for today, let me share with you a blessing that came from those days.
There are countless blessings I could share, but I want to focus on one in particular - our local church, the church in which I was raised. Because of the unusual needs that existed in our family, we experienced an incredible outpouring of ministry from the families in our church.
People brought meals during and after hospital stays
People cut our grass, trimmed our hedges, painted our house
People repaired our cars
People responded when there were financial needs
People came over and just fellowshipped with Dad and Mom when they could not get out of the house
People intensified their ministry to Mom and Dad when I went off to college
The list is endless. The people in our church ministered to us. They used their gifts to share with us and to love us. And this is one of the reasons that I love the local church.
Last week’s installment of “What We Can Do” addressed identifying opportunities for sharing the gospel with those that don’t know Jesus. Today, I want to challenge us to identify ministry needs and opportunities in your church. If you look around, there are people in your church fellowship today that need ministry. There are widows and widowers that are grieving and need encouragement and a voice of hope. There are new people in the church that need relationships. They need someone to reach out and help them build a bridge from being a new member to being a cared-for member. There are children and students who don’t receive much spiritual food from home and they need mentors. There are single moms that need help with car and household repairs. There are senior adults that need companionship and to know life hasn’t passed them by. There are classes that need teachers, ball teams that need coaches and the list could go on and on.
COVID has certainly impacted all of culture today. For example the food service industry has been impacted by the shortage of employees. Restaurants are closing or adjusting their business hours because they can’t find workers. And the church has been hit as well. Ministries that once thrived in the church are today non-existent. And much of the reason is the shortage of volunteers.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. According to Ephesians 4:12 people are needed to accomplish God’s work.. And you and I can do something about it! Find a place where you can use your gifts to minister in your local church. A close friend of mine, Pastor Kraig Kelsey, is the Minister of Member Involvement in his church. Kraig loves to take people through an assessment called PLACE. It is a ministry tool that identifies spiritual gifts and ministry passions and matches those to a ministry in the church. You would be amazed at the people that Pastor Kraig has helped become involved in ministry. People discover their ministry passions and the church is strengthened. The church grows healthier when people are serving.
So where do you go from here? First, eliminate the “it is what it is'' mindset and start doing what we can do by serving. Find a place of ministry in your church. Dr. Adrian Rogers used to say, “Go to the pastor of your church and tell him to put you to work.” Find a person that needs ministry in your church and serve them. Get trained and ready, and start today.
You are a critical part of the Body of Christ. Without you, many ministry opportunities will go unfulfilled. So let’s get going - identify the ministry opportunities in your church, and let’s serve together!