On serving God full-time.
Written by
2 copper mites
2 min read
Sometimes during sermons, you may have heard preachers say: “We need more full-time workers.”
It appears to be common that among our churches in various countries, preachers are expressing great concern about the lack of youths stepping up to offer themselves as full-time preachers.
We know that full-time preacher-hood is not for everyone. Within His church, God has called us to do different things (Eph 4:11-12) and given us different gifts for our various roles (Rom 12:6-8). Even so, knowing our churches worldwide have this pressing need for more full-time preachers, if we are eligible, let us pray and ask God seriously to reveal whether it is His will for us to fulfill this need in the church; and if it is truly God’s calling, ask God for the strength to deny ourselves and submit to His calling.
With regards to God’s call for us to serve, whether as a full-time preacher or another role, here are two more verses in Romans for our consideration:
(Rom 11:29) “For the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable.” – meaning, once God has called you for a purpose, He will not change His mind, as such is His nature (Is 46:10-11; Num 23:19-20). Then, herein lies the crux of the matter: will we choose to obey His calling, or be disobedient to our heavenly vision (Acts 26:19)?
(Rom 12:11) “Not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord” – whether we are full-time preachers or not, God has called all of us believers to serve Him diligently and fervently.
In other words, even if we are not full-time preachers, we ought to have the heart of a full-time servant of God. After all, this is how God views us. Just recall all of Jesus’ parables where He refers to us as His servants (e.g. Mt 25:14-30) and His labourers (e.g. Mt 20:1-16).
How, then, can we cultivate ourselves to have the heart of a full-time servant of God?
To answer this question, we need to first examine our lifestyles, including our daily habits, routines, and interactions, and ask ourselves: am I leading a lifestyle that is befitting a servant of God? Do my habits, routines and interactions encourage me to have this heart of a full-time servant?
And if not, how should I adjust my lifestyle?
(To be continued in Part 2.)