By Angela Harwood
Close your eyes. Breathe deep. Think of things about which you are passionate. Reacquaint yourself with promises God has spoken into your life. What do you love? What makes you unique? What do you feel called to do? The things you are thinking about right now are clues to the marvelous gifts inside of you, gifts God has given you to share with others.
When God calls us to an area of ministry, we often feel under-educated, ill-equipped, nervous, scared, and inadequate. To soar in ministry we often have to step into unknown territory, abandon gravity, and do a trust-fall into His everlasting arms. When God breathes a dream into our lives and we feel incompetent to accomplish it, we must remember in those times of insecurity and weakness that God will give the strength needed to soar on wings like eagles.
We serve a divine, creative God. He desires to use the uniqueness of our personalities and giftings to accomplish the things He has ordained us to do. I have struggled most in life by comparing myself with other people. It’s easy to look around and think, If I had her talent, I would be used more. If I had his skill, I would get noticed more. If I had their family life, I wouldn’t be so sad. The truth is, we each have a divine purpose for our lives. God desires to take our flaws, strengths, weaknesses, and pasts and use them for an instrument of ministry.
II Corinthians 10:12 explains that when we compare ourselves to others, we are unwise. When we start comparing our appearance, popularity, relationships, talent, ability, and wealth to other people, we can feel worthless or prideful. God desires for us to accept who He created us to be. Our passions can be used as a catalyst to accomplish great things for the kingdom of God.
When God called me to a pulpit ministry, I fought against Him because I was a nervous person. I
would cry while attending Bible college when a teacher would ask me to read a verse of Scripture in class, not because I felt the presence of God but because I was so nervous. When God spoke to my heart about being a speaker, I began to reason with Him, telling Him all the reasons why someone else was better suited for that kind of ministry. God did not seem to care about my thoughts and my plans so it was only a matter of time before I relented my own will to His. Through the years God has surpassed my talent and limited ability and has brought me from the natural realm to the supernatural realm where I completely depend on Him.
Do not despise small beginnings. Gifts are not given to us in full bloom but they are developed over time. God will never involve Himself in a dream that you are able to achieve alone. He will put you in uncomfortable situations purposely to cause you to depend on His strength and provision. When there is an impossible situation in your life, know that is the kind of environment in which miracles thrive.
What do you want God to do in your life? It is time to soar beyond mediocrity and the mundane. It is time to ask for the unimaginable, the unthinkable, and the unprecedented. Spread your wings and enter into a new dimension—and soar to a new horizon in ministry.
The above article, “Soaring in Ministry,” is written by Angela Harwood. The article was excerpted from Reflections Magazine, May/June 2014.
The material is copyrighted and should not be reprinted under any other name or author. However, this material may be freely used for personal study or research purposes.
