Nowadays, with so much on demand and so much need for ministries to rise up, this scripture is perfect to use for this blog post:
“Matthew 9:37-Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;” -KJV
According to factual evidence using google search, there are currently 8 billion people (worldometer) in this world, and who knows if it will increase.
Let’s take a look at another scripture;
“Luke 12:48-….For whomsoever much is given of them much will be required: and to whom people have committed much, of them will they ask the more.” -KJV
To those that don’t know what ministry is, I’ll just give you a thorough definition of what ministry means:
- Service to God always but being mindful of the fact that…
- Serving others is part of it in a holy and sanctified manner.
Now, when people think about ministry, the ideal mindset that usually comes to mind about someone called to minister is long skirts, no makeup, no jewelry, etc OR modern looks.
However, God doesn’t look at the outward appearance and He has given human beings the free will to choose what they’d like to wear or not. Some people don’t like certain things and that’s okay. As long as the idea is not to make it a religious practice where everyone has to look & speak the same as them. Let’s look at another scripture in regard to being a leader:
“1 Timothy 4:12-….be you an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”-KJV
If we read the full scripture, it says that youth need to be an example to others. But in reality, if we look at the full chapter and the full book, even the books name (the book is written within Biblical text as a letter to Timothy) it was written to young Timothy because Timothy had a calling over his life and Paul perceived it through the Spirit of God. Now, it was written for Timothy, but it was written for our example to imitate. Timothy was an example of leadership, even in his youthful years. Why? Because he submitted himself to the leadership over him in order to fulfill the calling God had over his life.
We must imitate Timothy’s instructions Paul gave to him but being led by the Spirit of God.
Let’s look at ways to stay organized when managing a ministry:
Mental health matters
Your mental health indeed matters. If your brain is not organized, you won’t be able to manage a ministry. Please incorporate mental health strategies that are able to help and assist your mental health needs.
Ex:
- Not practicing secular yoga just because it’s popular and actually just meditating on the word of God because if God told His people to do that in the Old Testament times, it doesn’t mean that you can’t practice it now. If God decreed something as not needing to be practiced, let it be. If He decreed it to be practiced without saying it shouldn’t be practiced, let it be.
- Doing bible practices mentioned in the Old as in the New Testament, for we are called to put into practice the word of God in James 1:22.
- Things like exercising and eating according to your needs (avoiding gluttony).
- Ensuring you’re in a safe place both mentally, physically, and spiritually.
- Being mindful of who you’re giving ear to in sermons but making time to listen to sermons and reading the bible/studying the bible. Nowadays, there are different methods to hear a word from God given through others through podcasts, youtube, and other convenient platform applications. Plug into your current church ensuring that the doctrine is sound (meaning according to what God says is yes and what God says is no).
Get your home in order
Don’t try to make excuses and state that you can’t do what you need to do at home. Get your home in order. If you need help, call someone from your current church that is able to help you do what you need to do to get things done. But always relying on the strength of the Lord. Get your home in order because God will hold you accountable for the things that you’ve done at home that don’t please Him. If we are called to glorify God, our homes should be organized. Not just interior design and cleanliness, but your family. When you live under the roof with others, they’re looking at you to see if you’re really Christian or not. Are you maturing in your faith enough to be the light in your home and to help others who are growing in their faith? If not, talk to your leader in the church and they’ll give you a word of encouragement to keep the faith and how to manage yourself in your Christian walk.
Look for systematic ways to stay organized
- RESEARCH- A part of having a ministry is ensuring that you know what’s going on in the world in order to ensure that you know exactly what to pray about, whom to pray for, and what to stand in the gap for because remember that our fight is not against flesh and blood (meaning humans), but against the devil and demons (Ephesians 6:12).
- ONLINE SYSTEMATIC- There are online tools that you can manage your ministry schedule, even google calendar per say (as an example). You can just google for articles to see what suits you through google search. It doesn’t matter if the fountain is Christian or not. Let God accompany you through your search and just present that time management you’re doing on yourself in order to see what suits you. I’m pretty sure He’s fine with it as long as you know what’s the truth to practice and what isn’t according to your truth as a Christian believer, to practice.
- PHYSICAL SYSTEMATIC- When handling tasks, projects, etc. You’d need planners of any systematic organized way. Look for what suits you, there are so many planners on the market, including Christian planners as well. Platforms like Etsy and marketing stores like Target have planners. Even places like Staples (which is common to use nowadays since they have more paper inside), pharmacies like CVS, Duane Reade, and Walgreens. Even the Dollar Store & Family Dollar have planners for way less. The cost is according to your choice and needs. Don’t go by what people say but what God leads you to do because sometimes people can have good intentions at heart and when you check in with God, God gives you the: “no.”
Manage your time wisely
Sometimes we can be like Martha and be distracted by so much work, that we forget to sit at the feet of Jesus like Mary (Luke 10). Ensure to stay on top of your deadlines and personal deadlines.
Managing yourself
If you manage yourself and no one is managing you, you need to learn how to be okay with working alone. Feeling uncomfortable with working alone. That’s what leadership consists of. You will spend loads of your time being by yourself, but with God in the midst of you. I’m expecting at this point that you know how to manage your personal relationship with God. If not, let’s get to it=
- Manage your time by spending alone time with God because that’s part of having a ministry. It’s not just having bible studies with others and ensuring others are doing good. It’s ensuring that you’re good and that you’re receiving your spiritual needs as well (Matthew 4:4).
- Manage the way you schedule other mundane tasks and other things that may not be eternal but have eternal consequences if you don’t know how to manage them. The way you live shows who you are to others. The way you express yourself shows who you are to others. God wouldn’t want you to ruin your Christian testimony of how you live for him because you simply don’t know how to manage your time right. Okay? Okay.
- Don’t get distracted. Don’t. Don’t lose focus on the things God wants you to do simply because others want that from you. Just don’t. They’ll thank you for it later on! If they don’t, it’s okay. God will thank you!
Managing others
- If you work alongside others, ensure that you both are on track, and both are doing everything needed to be done.
- Keep in contact with each other whenever handling projects together.
- Ensure to continue holding each other accountable for the things that you’re both performing at that time, giving, and serving at that time.
- Everyone whose included in the details must be aware of what’s going on.
- The Bible is being applied because both are believers and both are going to be held accountable for what you both do. If it’s more than two people, guess what? The same applies.
- Ensuring God is in the midst of you all (Matthew 18:20).
- Whatever extra details are not mentioned that include budgeting and costs, ensure that’s up to date too.
Sincerely,
Your sister in the faith