After nearly 18 years of salvation I am not doing less for God but more.
When I gave my life to Jesus in 1995 I was a single mom and my ministry was cleaning the very small first building of a new church. Fast forward to 2013. My resume now reads something like this;
"Married mother of 6, helper to husband,cleaning team ministry leader (of the church that has now grown from 30 plus people in 1995 to over 500),teacher in the children's ministry, assistant to the children's ministry coordinator, bible study (small group) assistant, homeschooling mom, homemaker, local art school employee, writer, etc...."
Oh there have been times in the beginning that I would cry and ask God why He wanted me to do more. Can't I just be a
MOM?
I think alot of Christians ask that type of question.
Yes, God wants you to do more
MORE!
Why?
Because He is building His kingdom and He is building,
YOU.
Back in 1995 there was no way I could do for the Lord all I am doing now. About every two or three years He would give me a little more to do...or a new baby. Like I said, in the early years I would cry. Now I laugh. Okay sometimes I still cry. But I know God will give me the strength, and the GRACE to do all He wants me to do.
But I will tell you a secret. I am not some super woman. Nor am I so Holy Ghost that I can bear this load all on my own. No. There are some things that I do that keep me going strong for God. I will share those things but let me first say this. Everyone is called to do
SOMETHING.
That something is nonnegotiable. We don't get to choose what that something is. We don't get to put it off until a more convenient time. When the call of God comes God is listening for only one reply,
YES LORD.
Some never answer the call (command). They actually believe they get to pick and choose in the Kingdom of God.
Some say YES. But then when the load gets to heavy, or boring, or inconvenient they quit. But because deep down they know that they are disobeying God they lose joy, they get bitter, and sometimes they leave. The weight of knowing they should still be doing what God commanded becomes too hard to bear.
But others say YES and keep saying YES.
They do it with joy and they serve when they are tired, or busy at other things, or sick, or even when the work gets repetitive and they would rather do something more
FUN.
Over the years I have watched and learned how to survive the work of God from great men and women who have gone before me. If you do these things you can also continue in God's will for you and not just survive but
THRIVE.
1. We don't get to choose. Settle it that when the call comes the proper response is a simple "yes".
2. Pray. Pray. Pray. In prayer you will find strength to go on when things get tough. You can ask God to give you a fresh vision for the work when it gets boring or you feel it's not productive. You can be to the bone honest with God about how much you dislike what He gave you to do and He won't hate you. Then you can say, "Never the less, Your will be done."
3. Talk to your leader. When you want to quit go to the one who won't feel sorry for you but will give you the Word of God, a good swift kick in the pants, and the encouragement to press on.
4. Take the word QUIT out of your vocabulary. Learn that when God is done is done using you in an area He will move you on through leadership...not to sit down and do nothing, but to labor in another area of the kingdom.
Remember God is not just building His kingdom but He is also building the worker. Do you want to be strong in the Lord? Building strength requires work. Do these four things and you cannot help but grow
STRONGER.
So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up. Gal 6:9 NLT
...the work is great, because the temple is not for man but for the Lord God. 1 Chron 29:1 NKJ
*The above photo is of me and my oldest. We were doing a salvation drama in our church and I got to be a demon. Boy was that makeup itchy!
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