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Friday Focus: moving from rent to own.
hey thanks for reading, i was inspired by one of the chapters our small group had read. the name of the curriculum is titled FREWAY. It is about re- discovery of the way our Heavenly father would want us to live. This chapter was talking about how we need to own our responses to situations. I would use this principal to apply in my ministry.
I am convinced that the level of our service is contingent upon our perception of belonging in the ministry or loyalty to the vision of the church. That means my ministry will grow only if I take ownership.
What if our attitude of ministry was likened to living in a home.
What if you don’t own? Then your renting.
Rent is due a certain time every month. It can be defined with a date and time. We pay rent because we live there, that is our base of operations and where we keep our possessions, it provides shelter for our family. but we don’t own it, we are just renting. If there is a leaky faucet? Not my problem, it belongs to someone else. I don’t own it. The landlord does. I’m just owning the home part time.
It is not our house, we are just renting. When a problem happens in the home, you call the land Lord to correct it. after all, he owns the property, he has invested his resources into the area you are only in possession of for a time and if you dont like it? you can move. Think about this: the owner chooses you to be in his property in exchange for your money that you pay regularly. Physically, money cannot keep you protected from the elements. Nor could it have kept you fed in short, it is a resource that you exchange for something tangible.
Did you notice the mindset for both the owner and the renter? What type of person are you in ministry? Are you an owner or a renter? Just like home owners, those who lead have a sense of ownership they have vision and purpose for their ministry. They have expectations. They meet The Lord while in motion not sitting on the side lines. Now being an owner does not mean you’re the pastor. It takes all of us as leaders to develop that ownership. I am reminded of when I was in Washington and I was in my spiritual Dad’s church. he is a great man of God! I wanted to be like him so I did what he did. When I saw him clean the church I knew I cleaned the church if there was papers or trash underneath the seats I would pick it up helping keep my church clean and neat. Then when I helped in the Sound booth I did my best. I immersed myself into it. I had no clue how to run a sound system but I had a heart to do it. I did it and God met me while i was in motion, it was a blessing.
I moved from just renting; checking in, checking out of ministry to taking ownership of it!
The benefits of owning far outweigh any benefit of renting. I hope you take ownership of your ministry. Ask the hard questions. When you find it’s you’re fault? Don’t beat yourself up. Own it and rejoice in the fact that you have something to do with the turnaround. Have a great week. Teresa & I are praying for you, be encouraged…
– Mike
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The Parable of the Missing Sock……
As I am recovering from surgery, one of my self-imposed man duties around the house is the laundry. I am not able to do all the laundry, so I do as much as I can. Teresa is absolutely amazing at the multitasking of all the house chores but, around the great expanse of our hacienda I am known as:
“THE SOCK FOLDER”
Yes, armed with nothing more than a mesh laundry bag and patience as my sidearm, I rescue the small (my son’s) poor, defenseless single sock from the clutches of the evil sock eating washer/dryer bandit gang. Then, I heroically bring them back to its mate safe and sound. “It’s all in a day’s work ma’am as I gently tip my Stetson and ride off into the west on my trusty steed “laundry basket”. While many of us look at laundry as mundane. I learned a lesson that I would enjoy to share with you the reader.
Most of us would not even think twice about a missing sock because it is just a sock. Although, the question remains “would you look for that missing sock?” Are you willing to go and look around the laundry room for that sock? Its’ just a sock, right!? I mean, we have others that closely look alike and we could just make do with what we have although, we will not get what we pay for because there will always be a sock in the drawer that is missing it’s pair.
I think we as leaders could experience this when we are running at 90% but refuse to go after that last 10. Rather than finish strong with our project by ensuring everyone on the team was recognized. We go on without a sincere appreciation of our team members’ gifts reducing their contributions as a part of their paid duties.
Regarding ministry, we may experience this when we continue to run our ministries without those precious souls who fade away after our big outreach campaign or you fill in the blank. Whether from installing a network, to even handing out drinks during a community clean-up everyone is important. EVERYONE!
That is what was communicated in the book of Luke chapter 15 in illustrating the dual likeness of how far people will go including our heavenly Father. The bible records Jesus telling a story of a shepherd leaving the 99 safe sheep for that one in danger. He continues to reason with his audience giving the mental picture of a woman lighting a lamp looking for that lost coin. He concludes with the lost son. He does all this to answer why he chose to fellowship with the have-not’s….. Because in him (Christ), the misfits fit.
People matter, whether they fellowship with you at church, serve alongside you or slip out of contact. I ask you, would you go and see if they’re ok? Like a missing sock in a sock drawer we too can be ineffective without our team members.
Would you go after the missing sock? What are your thoughts?
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Join the Team
I have heard it said that “you can’t win a championship if you don’t get on a team”. While others may dispute the validity of this statement, I believe it is also true for the body of Christ.
The church as a whole needs people who are willing to serve and take part in their local congregations. When we serve in the church we call our church-home, it is as though the Lord breaks the walls that distinguish what is called a surviving church to a thriving church. Blessings are poured out on the congregation because it has been awakened from the lulls of its selfishness and pride (more on that in a later blog). Such as; prayers being answered, marriages healed, children return to the Lord, and people are freed from sickness and immorality.
Joining the team reveals your identity. Over the many years that I have worked my uniforms have changed, although one thing remains- my uniform reveals my position. It shows those with whom you come in contact with what and who you represent. It lets others know what they can or cannot expect from you. For example, suppose I needed a fire to be put out, I would go to a fire fighter before I would go to a policeman because of what the fire fighters title represents. I would expect that the fire can be extinguished because I have confidence in that firefighter’s ability due to his training and years of expertise. Although I may not know him personally, I recognize the uniform. Can we get others to recognize that we are sent and called to be a blessing?
Allow me to ask you this? When was the last time you ever thanked your pastor for his un-ending service to you and your family? Can you recall a moment that your pastor was there for you in your troubling hour? If I may ask again? When was the last time you had prayed for your pastor and his family?
I want to encourage the Christian who feels that they may not have a skill to go and serve anyway. Serve with a willing heart. Serve as though your life depended on it. Pray, share prayers, literally be the church. Then something will happen. A dynamic change will occur simply because you and I made time to help our pastor fulfill the God-given vision for this church.
It’s time to join the team!
Ignited,
Mike
Escalanteministries.com 