LEARNING TO BE content in the stage you’re at is crucial to finding and then living in your purpose. If God wanted you to be anywhere else in your life, you would be there. Don’t get me wrong, you should never be satisfied with a poor lifestyle, but your growing stages of maturity in the Word take time. You will not know everything overnight. We try to compete so much to show ourselves approved, but it’s important to know your calling and be comfortable in that.
God gifts us to work in the purpose for which we have been called. We know our gifts by being tuned in to our own personality. Sometimes our gifts may be exposed in our weaknesses, our strengths, or both. A job can develop a lot of characteristics that are in us that we didn’t even know were there. Pay close attention to yourself. If you’re in tune with the Holy Spirit, He will guide you, He will reveal Himself, He will say yes or no. You will not be confused because you will have such a burning desire that it will not rest until you work it out. The biggest mistake we make when trying to fi nd our purpose is to try to walk in someone else’s purpose. We try to be someone else or someone who other people want us to be.
Ministry is not about saying, “OK, I’ll do it if this is what you want.” Ministry is about the skills at hand, your gifts in operation, and the passion that lies within you to successfully carry out the task. Watch for people who appoint others to positions of authority in the body of Christ. All ministers do not come into ministry the traditional way or in one way. At one point, the disciples were worried about other ministers who were going another way when Jesus was walking with them, showing them the ropes. Mark 9:38-40 relates the story: “And John answered him, saying, ‘Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and he followeth not us: and we forbad him, because he followeth not us.’ But Jesus said, ‘Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. For he that is not against us is on our part.’” Just because ministries are different, or men are not walking in the direction you are, it doesn’t mean they’re in error. We have got to get out of that mindset. All of God’s children will not go through the traditional system of worldly men’s credentials. In fact, it was told that God would rarely use wise men to do a job for him. Why? Moving in ministry and purpose is not dependent totally upon our intellect. Your ability and success in ministry is not about your intellect; it’s about your submissive attitude to give God glory and allow His power to rest upon you.
No flesh will glory in the presence of God. Paul was a knowledgeable man when God called and used Him, but he counted his knowledge as dung, rather opting to depend on God’s glory than on His own intellect. God raises dysfunctional characteristics and unbalanced people to be examples. Diversity ministers. We must properly discern the body and know where our place, callings, and positions are in the body. Why? No man will be without excuse. The very one you despise may turn out to be your chief cornerstone. Trust me, I have found that none of the true words of God fall to the ground. Divisions cause a lot of harm, fractions, friction, disappointment, disapproval, schisms, and even reproach upon God’s name and the ministry.
We need all of the body in order to function properly. We must learn to reverence God. His name should be just as big as any corporation in the world. Many false ministries are not exposed because they look real, and no one knows what the right is supposed to be. If we lay the foundation of our ministries on the Word of God, we’ll have a true pattern that can be followed. Then the ministry will fl ourish, and its purpose will be sure. I believe we are in a time when a lot of ministries will start falling like never before. If they are not fl ourishing the way God intended, or fulfilling their purpose, God will test them and they will be exposed by fi re. God will burn up works that are not honoring Him and may turn the work over to the heathens to run. What are you willing to give up? What are you willing to live for? What is your purpose? Where do you fi t? What vision did God give you? What part of the body are you?
Meditate on I Corinthians 12:16-27: : “And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. And if they were all one member, where were the body? But now are they many members, yet but one body. And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary: And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked: That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.” —1 Corinthians 12:16-27
May God bless the hearers and the doers of His Word.
