PREPARATION FOR MINISTRY
Jaime Wyrtzen Lauze´
Mark 1:13a "And he was in the wilderness forty days..."
Has God called you to the ministry? Have you struggled over what you should do next?
In Mark, chapter 1, we see a period of time before Jesus went public in His ministry. We often think of Jesus being born and then we skip over to His active ministry. But He had 30 years preceding that. We see from other gospel accounts that Jesus knew the scriptures so well as a child that He was able to teach. Jesus always had a scripture ready to answer, explain, or rebuke. While we may not have a lot of the details of Jesus early life, that doesn't mean that those silent years were unimportant. The very Word of God, Who spoke this universe into existence quietly prepared until it was the right time for Him to speak. But that was not the beginning of His ministry.
We also know that Jesus followed His adoptive fathers' footsteps in being a carpenter. At the age of 30, Jesus took some important steps before He went public. In obedience, He was baptized. Can you imagine! The very One Who will be high and lifted up allowed Himself to be immersed. The very One Who would die and come back to life obeyed in baptism. He did everything as an obedient example for us. Jesus did everything with a humble servant's heart.
We can learn so much from His early life. Most Christians aren't called to be pastors, but all Christians ARE called to ministry. Jesus said in Matthew "Go into all the world preaching the gospel..." He didn't say, "Some of you go." It may mean going into the next room and to minister to your family. Or it could mean going to another county. We are all called to be a light in this dark world. But we have to prepare.
Thank You, Heavenly Father, for not leaving us helpless. We embrace the example that Your Son, Jesus, gave us. Show us who You have called us to minister to. In Jesus Precious Name, Amen
Journal
Who has God called you to minister to? Remember, 'minister' can mean many different things: praying, sharing the Gospel, reading to someone...
How can you prepare?
For more from Christine Wyrtzen and Jaime Wyrtzen Lauze, please visit www.daughtersofpromise.org
Originally published Monday, 01 August 2016.
SHARE
