A few months ago I wrote about taking a break from ministry duties. I needed to step back and just listen. Am I doing this for the right reason? And if so, what are my next steps?
Because I promised I’d share my journey with you, here is what I’ve found…
Yes. I am ministering to people because Jesus has called me to a purpose. That’s the right reason. I know that seems like a simple answer. I think people who are called into ministry (could it be you?) believe that they have to have an “experience” of some sort. The fact is when you accept Christ; you are called to a purpose. The “experience” is life itself with awakenings sprinkled in. Those moments when you feel so close to God that you can almost remember the moment He breathed life into you. I was making it too hard. I was searching for my mantle when I was already wearing it.
No. My calling isn’t going to be like everyone else’s. So it’s going to feel like I’m off the beaten path. Why do we tend to look at others’ journeys and think ours are going to be just like the ones next to us? Why do we elevate or discount our experiences as greater or lesser than those of others? I have always been a little “different”. That’s ok. God needs me to be this way because the folks He sends to me need a person that can understand differences.
My next steps will come to me when He’s ready to give them to me. But not until I lift my feet to take them. I came to realize that He doesn’t want me to have all the answers to my questions yet. He wants me to have all the answers to my questions in Him and in His timing. In other words, He is teaching me to ask the question and let Him be the answer. Amen!
It looks like this. I know He wants me to keep writing. So naturally I have had writer’s block for the past few weeks. I’m not kidding. I would sit down to type and… Nothing. But when I gave up and said “Okay Jesus, what do you want me to write?” No more block. My upcoming posts will be poetic, scholarly, edifying, or random thoughts of strangeness. But they will all have Jesus at the center.
Listen. If you are Christian, you are called to a purpose. You may be called to a pulpit, the mission field, the internet, or your family. But don’t stress if you can’t find your mantle. You’re probably already wearing it!
Blessings,
Sharon
Faithfully Fit 