Author: pastordarryl68

LIFE is ministry. It is the way of Jesus.

And calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority over them. [43] But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant; [44] and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. [45] For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

Mark 10:42-45

Ministry is every single conversation and interaction with every human being, whether a follower of Jesus, agnostic, or professing atheist, whether family, stranger, or enemy. It is every thought I have toward my fellow man. It is my every intention/motivation involving them. Ministry is no respecter of persons.

I cannot box ministry into a specific task on Sunday at church or Friday night at a soup kitchen during a specific period of time I’ve allocated. Ministry doesn’t punch out at 5pm. It doesn’t turn off because I’m tired.

Ministry isn’t a face I put on or a tone I take because I must. Ministry is the Spirit of God within me, serving Yahweh by caring for His creation — His image-bearers — as if it were Him.

Ministry is the administration of grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness by those who have received it…to those who need it…none of us deserving it.

Like many people who say they “love” someone else, at the root, that love is really just for me. If I love a person because of how they look or make me feel or that I enjoy doing things with them, that is loving ME…because it’s what I am attracted to, it’s what I enjoy, and it fits my preferences.

If I can decide who deserves to be served, how long I will serve, when they deserve it, or how they deserve it, I am serving myself and not the Lord our God, King of the universe, Creator, and Savior of our souls.

Nearly every time a sermon is given, two sermons are going on simultaneously: the one given by the teacher/preacher and the one heard by us. I can’t tell you how many times people have stopped to talk after church and commented on something I said…that I never said.

Now, sometimes that is because we put what someone is speaking thru our own filters rather than thru the filters through which the teacher is speaking. Sometimes it’s because we’re only 1/2 listening.

But, sometimes, it is because while God is speaking to the congregation thru the teacher/preacher, He is simultaneously speaking to individuals at the same time.

This is because God’s Word is ALIVE and POWERFUL. His Word has the power to speak into every situation and into the deepest parts of our souls. When the Word of God is received by an open heart, it is life-changing. When the Word is spoken, it’s set free to roam, and when the Word of God is set free, captives are set free. When the Word of God is proclaimed, it unleashes God’s power and authority over every area of our lives, even the ones that the teacher/preacher doesn’t touch on.

Hebrews 4:12

For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Church, if God is blessing your body with fruitfulness, do not let your guard down. Whatever you notice, the enemy of Jesus also notices.

The simplest way to take down an otherwise healthy body is a kidney punch to your ONENESS. The enemy can destroy your body if he can poison your UNITY – your singleness of mission, vision, and focus on Jesus.

Many assemblies of professing christians need not worry…the enemy has seen to it they’ve never really experienced a ONENESS of God’s Spirit that needed to be guarded.

But the body of Christ that is UNITED by the Spirit of God in mission, passion, love for God and love for His creation must be ever on guard against the not-so-random assault on UNITY — whether it be unbridled gossip, attitudes of dissension over teachers/preachers or disagreement over pet doctrines and private interpretations of Scripture or whether it be pure jealousy and arrogance permitted to fester like cancer in the hearts of God’s people.

Be on guard. Be vigilant. Be proactive. Expose the work of the enemy – call it out and name it for what it is. This is not your church. This is not “their” church. This is God’s church and He is worthy of the fight for UNITY and ONENESS.

Proverbs 18:13 One who gives an answer before he hears, It is foolishness and shame to him.

The lazy fool doesn’t want to listen or consider truth but simply speaks his/her opinion as fact. Many people ignorantly pass on talking points that ignorant people have handed them. How do you avoid this?

(1) Begin with believing the best of what you’ve heard that doesn’t agree with what you believe.

(2) Get the facts before speaking on a matter; take some time to investigate before you speak. Be responsible and careful.

(3) Go to the source. Don’t gossip and theorize with 3rd parties that know no more about the source than you do.

(4) be open to thoughts that you may not have considered based on your own bias and cultural filters.

(5) make sure you hear both sides of any story before making judgments. Seek additional information.

This is called discipline and diligence – the opposite of being a lazy fool, particularly with your mind and your mouth.

It’s difficult work, but it avoids bias and prejudice. Don’t judge before getting the facts.

However, if all you want to do is slap others in the face with the display of your superior opinion and biased understanding and signal your virtue to the masses, then by all means, continue down the path of a shameful, lazy fool.

Disagreeing with you about God’s design, God’s will, God’s Word, and/or the work of God’s Spirit is not equal to HATE or ABUSE. It’s just that…disagreement. I do not hate you for disagreeing with me any more than you should hate me for disagreeing with you. Our disagreement should never be interpreted as HATE or ABUSE.

BUT, the repentant, regenerate, redeemed follower of Jesus is most certainly going to view God’s world through God’s lens, AND those who reject God and/or reject His Spirit and His Word are going to view this world thru their own lens.

Simply put:

God’s disapproval = agreement from His followers

disagreement = disagreement

disagreement ≠ hate

disapproval ≠ hate

“Trigger” is a buzzword used in the psychology and counseling community. It’s something that you see or hear that “triggers” an emotional or physical response from you, often based on a previous experience.

Triggers are everywhere. Everybody has a trigger or ten or twenty. For some, a trigger can be debilitating. For others, everything is a trigger. For some, a trigger is just an excuse to behave poorly.

The Bible would call these snares, entanglements, temptations, allurements, or enticements. They are intended by the enemy to distract and derail, and disable.

It is amazing the contrast between how pop psychologists, self-soothers, and narcissists would differ from Biblical instruction in dealing with triggers.

To spend no time in the Word of God is a tragedy of epic proportions. To elevate career, family, and self-centered endeavors, hobbies, interests, etc., to the extent that they choke out time in God’s Word is idolatry, plain and simple.

To only consume the Word of God in solitude for a “quiet time” or “daily reading” is to forfeit the richness for which the Holy Scriptures were designed. To meme it and not live it is hypocrisy.

To consume and walk in the Word of God with other followers of Jesus, to converse over it, study it, meditate on it, and apply it to all of life in the context of Christian community is to thrive in it and be nurtured and fulfilled by it.

As followers of Jesus, we need to be comforted and reminded of things from time to time…things that sometimes fall out of view as we navigate a broken, self-centered world. These reminders come from God’s Word and from lovers of God who dwell in God’s Word and are filled with the Spirit of God Himself.

When the flesh is overcoming our mind, emotions, and maybe even our physical condition, it IS important to remind ourselves and be reminded by others that God is at work through our tough circumstances and our pain (sometimes self-inflicted)…this is comforting. He IS in CONSTANT care for and ABSOLUTE rule over all of His creation, for HIS glory and the good of HIS people. We NEED that reminder that it’s for the GOOD of His people.

But, it’s critically even more important as Spirit-filled believers to remember that the FLESH will always drive us to think about OURSELVES…OUR pain, OUR hurts, OUR circumstances, OUR tough times, OUR well-being, what WE need, what WE want, what WE deserve, etc. We also NEED the reminder that our story is for HIS glory.

The Spirit who FILLS us with HIS presence, HIS fruit, HIS power — this HOLY Spirit indwells us to walk according to HIS will, HIS plan, HIS purposes, “HIS workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

Even as Christians who are indwelt by HIS Spirit, if we don’t crucify the flesh daily and bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, we can still make it all about us. We must align our minds and hearts with the Holy Spirit and His Holy Word, and we need friends and community that will do the same.

It’s not about me…it’s ALL about HIM!