What advice should a seasoned pastor give to a person that wants to go into ministry?

My question is what advice should a seasoned pastor give to a person that believe they are called to ministry? What are the signs a person can demonstrate that indicate they are not called to ministry?

 

Michael Rogers

Personally, when someone tells me they are called to the ministry the first thing I try to do is convince them they are not. The process of having to defend the call begins to define the call for them, or helps them to see that they are not called. If they decide they are not called, then I start talking to them about what desire led to them thinking they were and we discuss how to use that desire to further God's Kingdom. One of my music guys came and said he was called and in half an hour realized he wasn't. However, he's now one of my elders and I can see how his desire at the time not only led him to that decision, but led us to pursue him for that position.

If I can't dissuade them, it's a good first indication. So many times, those in ministry face the kind of opposition that will make them question their sanity for choosing to do this job. In those times, God's call is all that keeps them at it. Once they have convinced me that I can't "unconvince" them, I talk to them about some of the things they will need to consider:

1. Your family is your first ministry. Are they on board? You don't want to have to fight at home to do what you feel you are called to do. Often the spouse is not on board at first but realizes the calling is true. Proceeding cautiously helps the spouse to get used to the new roles the couple will have to play.

2. Your spiritual maturity is the ceiling for your flock. Are you spiritually prepared to be the leader for a group of people who may, at first, be ahead of you? Can you be humble enough to lean on those people? Are you spiritually prepared to help a group of people who need to know how to catch up with you? Can you be humble enough to lead those people?

3. Be careful with this one: do your abilities match up with the requirements of the job? A poor speaker can't necessarily be a lead pastor, but that doesn't preclude a person from being in ministry. A poor singer can't be a worship leader, but they might have an aptitude for production and direction that allows them to find good singers. Still, make sure your "calling" is more than a desire to use abilities you want to develop or want to show off.

4. Are you a leader? Doesn't matter if you are an introvert or an extrovert. Doesn't matter if you are a team builder or a charismatic visioneer. Doesn't matter if you want to head up the whole church or just a ministry inside the church. Leadership today is important in ministry.

5. How much have you really prayed about this? No, really. Not just, "God, I'd really like to..." It's been my experience that a true calling is almost one a person doesn't want. Most often it is a decision wrestled to the ground and the called one was not the winner. Not always, but often.

These aren't exhaustive, but just some quick thoughts from my experience. Any one else have ideas?

 

 

Keith Manning

After spending two decades in vocational ministry, from my experience I would add one thing to Michael's comments: have an employable skill set. If you want out or are forced out of the ministry you'll have something to fall back upon to feed yourself and your family. This has always been good advice, but especially now the way this culture is headed there may come a time when church structures as we now know them will no longer be viable.

 

 

Brittany Cartwright

I'm not a seasoned pastor, in fact I'm a student starting my M.Div. I can appreciate all of these though I would be careful with the first. Be careful with how you try to dissuade them, because they might shut you out; something like that- especially if the call is real- can feel very personal and when we've been told all our lives that we can be anything... being told that we can't or shouldn't be something is a pretty big blow. I'm sure that you can imagine how having possibly the first person you've told, if not certainly an important person, tell you what is effectively "no" can feel. By all means I agree that not everybody who thinks they are called are in fact called... but start gently when you have them examine themselves. By routing the conversation first to what they have to offer, it might lead better into whether or not they are called or ready. And remember, not being ready doesn't mean not called- my call began when I was 13 and I fought against it, it only came to full acknowledgement and acceptance in my late teens/ early twenties. Also not accepting it at first doesn't mean the called doesn't win. I understand your metaphor but once I did accept it I was happier in that knowledge.

 

 

Colleen Koladzinski

Great conversations. Thank you all for sharing. I am in ministry and fought the whole way knowing God made a huge mistake to "call me" to ministry. Yet because I was obedient, things fell into place and I couldn't be happier. In fact, it doesn't even feel like a job. I never went to school for this nor dreamed of working in a church. However, my faith was strong and as I look back on past careers, God set His plan. I am director over benevolence and care ministries in a mega church.

 

 

Dennis Thielen

I also have to agree with Keith. Things have gotten to the place where we literally have to tell someone "don't quit your day job." There are small rural areas where a Pastor will need to work because that local church cannot financially support a fulltime paid Pastor. Are these saints supposed to "do without?" I know that some will bring in tithing and money raising schemes at this point. But some small congregations are already giving all they can, and yet more is needed to pay a mortgage. Some churches have to rent a meeting place because buying a property and placing a multimillion dollar facility on it just can't be done without a major miracle. Often, just as God wants the individual Christian to go through a growth process, He puts a smaller local church through that same process! Maintaining a facility with Golden spires may not even be God's method of reaching the lost, or supporting individual growth. The Church I attended had the senior Pastor retire. Another brother became the Pastor and I his assistant (I'm older than him and I felt the younger man should have his turn at it). But the mortgage was quite a bit per month. The denomination decided to sell the building, because we could not come up with that kind of money. Now we are a mobile church... This is today's reality. It's happening all over the world...

 

Forgiving the Undeserving

 

Ephesians 4:30-32

When I tell people who have been ill-treated that full healing requires forgiving their abuser, many will argue, “You don’t understand the hurt I’ve endured.” They’re right. But a bitter spirit, like cancer, penetrates every part of our life. Anger and resentment are symptoms that cannot be pushed away and ignored. They spill out, harming relationships and leading to risky decisions.

 

Withholding forgiveness may feel as if we’re punishing the offender. But people cannot take revenge on one another without destroying themselves. That’s why the Lord calls us to follow His example of extending grace to all (Eph. 4:32). Since God has pardoned us so generously, we shouldn’t withhold forgiveness from others. When someone hurts us, we may feel that person doesn’t deserve pardon, but neither are we deserving of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

 

Crucifixion was slow and agonizing, but Jesus’ worst torment occurred when the sin of the world was laid on Him and His Father turned away (Matt. 27:46). Still, as the crowd cast lots for His garments, Jesus gave us the best possible example of forgiveness by saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). I may not know your pain, but I assure you that Jesus does. With His infinite love and gentleness, He’ll help you overcome hurt, anger, and bitterness.

 

Forgiveness is a choice—an act of service to the Lord, a witness to the person who inflicted our pain, and a necessary step in our healing. No matter how terrible the acts committed against us were, God requires that we show mercy. For our good and His glory, He wants us to give up the “right” to punish those who hurt us.

Bible in One Year: Ecclesiastes 5-8

 

 

PROVERB OF THE DAY

July 18

 

Proverbs 19:27

27 Cease , my son, to hear the instruction that causeth to err from the words of knowledge.

 

That Nagging Feeling

•  

  Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of His own accord, but only what He sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. John 5:19 ESV
  
  Their eyes welled up with tears as I handed them the envelope. Without saying anything, they knew what was inside because they had been silently praying for help. All the while they were trying to keep up an outward appearance that everything was fine. I just had this nagging feeling that I was supposed to give them some money, though by all appearances they appeared to have more than I did. God saw what I did not see.
  
  Jesus rose early in the morning and prayed, then listened and was alert to what the Holy Spirit was saying. It was not a cold, dead, religious word but a living, fresh, relevant word each day. No one walked on water, until Jesus did. No one fed thousands from one lunch basket, until Jesus did. He was our example and worked with God daily. He always did what He saw the Father doing. 
  
  When you have that nagging feeling that you are supposed to do something, even though it appears to make no sense to you, do it. God often seeks those that will listen to be the answer to someone's secret prayer. Following the gentle prompting of the Holy Spirit will make your life come alive. 
  
  Prayer: Father, please refill me with your Holy Spirit and bring divine encounters in my life. I believe that You are the living God and have a plan for me. Teach me to recognize when You are speaking, in the name of Jesus.

 

“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” – 

2 Timothy 3:16-17

 

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” – Joshua 1:8

 

That’s right, players have to correctly identify the Book of the Bible that a particular Scripture is from to place an X or an O on the board. The first player or team to get three Xs or Os in a row wins!

Instead of kids silently reading and trying to memorize Scriptures, you get competition and excitement with players on the edge of their seats.

 

And this game isn’t just great for Sunday School … churches can use it at game nights or after potluck dinners and parents can play it with their kids.

 

You’ll be surprised at how much fun this game is … as well as how effective it is at helping players learn Bible verses!

 

It’s one of the first games we learn to play as kids and, truth be told, most adults still enjoy challenging their kids in an occasional tic-tac-toe game as well.

 

But there's one fundamental problem with Tic-Tac-Toe: once a child learns the basic strategy of the game, nearly every game ends in a draw.

 

Well, we’ve taken that fun game and made it better!

 

By adding the knowledge of Scripture verses to game play, we’ve lessened the odds of a tie and made the classic game much more exciting.

 

Players will have fun learning 100 of Christianity’s most popular Scriptures.

 

Simple enough for younger kids to understand and entertaining enough to keep the attention of teens and adults, Bible Tic-Tac-Toe is both easy to set up and easy to play.

 

Set-up:

Bible Tic-Tac-Toe is simple to assemble, requiring only that you print out the game materials on your church or home printer. You’ll also need a roll of masking tape to make the game board.

For game play, you can use a wall, a cleared tabletop, chalkboard or even the floor (our favorite)!

You’ll get everything you need to play in one easy-to-download PDF file, including:

Rules and instructions for play

100 Game Cards (Enough for 10 Rounds)

Answer sheets for each round, complete with background on both Books being used in the round

X and Y pieces, which only need to be cut out

 

Game Play:

Object: Be the first person or team to create a tic-tac-toe by matching three Scriptures in the same book vertically, horizontally, or diagonally.

Age Level: Recommended for ages 8 & up. However, younger kids can play when teamed up with older kids who are capable readers.

Players: 3+ Players are Required. Can also be played with large groups, with players divided into two teams.

Abridged Instructions (Very detailed instructions included, but this will give you an idea):

There are 10 Rounds of play included with your purchase. Each round includes 10 Scripture cards from 2 books of the Bible (5 Scriptures from each book)

For each round, all ten Scripture cards are displayed face side up for both players (or teams) to see.

Team "X" will be assigned one book of the Bible, and Team "Y" will be assigned the other book presented in the round.

For example, in Round 1 Team "X" is assigned the Book of Romans & Team "Y" is assigned the Book of Philippians.

Taking turns, the teams must select a Scripture card that comes from the book assigned to them before placing an X or Y on the grid.

For example, if the "X" team is assigned the Book of Romans, they must select a Scripture card coming from that book, and NOT pick one of the Scriptures coming from the Book of Philippians in order to earn an "X" on the gameboard

If a team incorrectly selects a Scripture that actually comes from the other Book, they other team wins an automatic space on the board.

The first person or team to get tic-tac-toe, three-in-a-row wins the round!

The game can be over in 10 minutes or, by adding more rounds, can last up to an hour.

You can also repeat rounds as a way to help reinforce the Scriptures in players’ minds. It can also be fun to introduce new rounds, and thereby two new books of the Bible.

Included in your Bible Tic-Tac-Toe game set will be Scriptures from the following books of the Bible:

Round #1: Romans versus Philippians

Round #2: Matthew versus John

Round #3: Proverbs versus Psalms

Round #4: Ezekiel verses Revelation

Round #5: Ephesians versus Hebrews

Round #6: Romans versus Corinthians

Round #7: Mark versus Luke

Round #8: Galatians versus Ephesians

Round #9: Proverbs versus Ecclesiastes

Round #10: James versus I John