“Now when the sun was setting all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him: and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them…."
Luke 4: 40-42 (KJV)
• Ministry is all about people’s problems.
SOMEONE said ministry is thirty percents of preaching and seventy percent of other things.
- You are called or appointed as a minister, leader, to solve people’s problems—to mop people’s tears.
- The proof of your ministry is the number of people whom you are able to put smile on their faces.
THE PEOPLE you are able to remove sorrows and sadnesses from their hearts and countenances.
"WHO COMFORTS US IN ALL OUR TRIBULATION, THAT WE MAY BE ABLE TO COMFORT THOSE WHO ARE IN ANY TROUBLE, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."
2 Corinthians 1:4 (NKJV)
• You are not qualify to lead the people until you know the way out of the problems of life.
THE proof of your leadership is the number of people you succeeded in changing their lives, made them fulfil purpose in life.
- You are called or assigned primarily to solve people’s problems.
THAT every dry bone that comes in contact with you, your ministry, receives LIFE (Ezekiel 37:1-12). - There are many in the valley of problems and afflictions.
YOU are called and assigned as God did assign Prophet Ezekiel to speak to the dry bones in the valley and raise them a triumphant saints—armies of the LORD: “So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, AN EXCEEDING GREAT ARMY” (Ezekiel 37:10).
YOU are called to cause the dry bones to rise again—give LIFE to every dry bone.
• What are the problems of lIfe?
I. Finances—money is one of the major problems of mankind.
II. Marriage—knowing who to marry and different phases of married life and challenges in marriage.
III. Social Life—social advancement, improvement of one’s position in the society.
IV. Career—education, way of making a living, profession and personal advancement in profession.
V. Progress in Life.
• Every human being desires progress.
- When life is void of progress, it becomes a burden.
- So as a minister or a leader, you should be able to help the people to move forward in life, through spiritual insights and the knowledge of your walk with God in His Word.
- You are called as a minister to make things happen for God's people.
• Some other areas to help the people:
- Vision—helping the people to discover VISION, PURPOSE, and how to realize and fulfil it.
VISION is the divine plan of God for an individual.
IT is a picture of the preferable future. IT is the essence of living. - Health—living a healthy life, which is a part of redemption package.
HAVING a good and sound health. DEALING with pains, sicknesses, diseases, infirmities and whatever by the anointing of the Holy Spirit on your life. - Spirituality—teaching and helping them to build a strong relationship and fellowship with God, which results in total deliverance from the power of sin and the devil, who is the archenemy of the believers.
- Emotional problems—helping those who have experience disappointments, failures, thus they are discouraged, having low self esteems.
- General—all problems of life: physical, spiritual, emotional and psychological.
-> How to be used to solve problems of life for the people
I. Love—genuine, compassionate love for the people under your leadership (Luke 7:11-15; Mark 6:34).
- If you do not love the people, you cannot be used to bless them.
THE bigger your love, the larger the number of the people you will be able to touch or minister to.
IF you cannot love passionately, then move out of the ministry work.
THE problems of the people must touch your heart. - People’s problems should be your number one priority in the ministry, not your personal comfort.
GOD will make you comfortable if you allow yourself to be used to comfort others.
• Take note: Compassion means feeling the suffering of others, prompting you to give help.
• Your effort might not be appreciated by all, but do it as unto the Lord.
GOD the Rewarder who sees your heart and the motives with which you do what you did would reward you. JESUS healed ten lepers, only one returned to give thanks and praises to God—the remaining nine never returned to give thanks (Luke 17:11-19).
II. Intimacy with God—having God's PRESENCE in your life.
- Intimacy with God makes His presence readily available in your Life, and His presence makes you manifest power, that is, the anointing, and it is the anointing that breaks the yoke of the enemy in the lives of people.
- You should be signs and wonders carrier: “And these signs shall follow them that believe: in my name [Jesus] shall they cast out devils they shall speak with new tongues…. take up serpents….. lay hand on the sick and they shall recover” (Mark 16:17-18).
JESUS has called you, assigned you, and raised you to liberate mankind from oppressions of the devil. - The source of people’s problems is the devil and you need God’s power, theanointing, to deliver them from such problems.
- No problem would be solved without God’s power and power comes by staying in God’s Presence.
BY walking with Him in fellowship—having communions with Him (Mark 6:45-46; Luke 5:15-16).
• Take note:
- To be effective in the ministry, you must be able to spend time in the presence of God.
NIGHT time is one of the time a minister or Leader should sacrifice to spend in God’s presence for him to be able to minister to people’s NEEDS effectively.
SACRIFICE your sleep that you may be a blessing to people.
III. Prayer and Fasting—Mark 9:14-29 [Note V. 29]; Matthew 17:14-21 [Note V. 21].
• A minister or leader who cannot pray and fast may not be a blessing to the people under him or her.
YOU must be able to deny yourself food and be able to pray, for you to be a vessel of blessing to the people.
FASTING does not kill, it renews spiritual and physical strength.
- In your prayers: stand in the gap to intercede for your people, God will answer you, when you call on Him. EVEN if those people do not deserve God’s help, He would do something on their problems because of your stand and covenant with Him.
- A Covenant is established through intimacy, obedience in your walk with God, over a period of time.
YOU do not become covenant friend of God, until you started walking with Him in obedience for an extended period of time—obeying all His instructions given to you even when they are not convenient.
• You will not fail in Jesus' name.
Peace!
TO BE CONTINUED