What’s My Ministry

Posted on 14. Nov, 2008 by ray in Life

I attended a training event recently. The training was focused on developing strategies to reach a given city and implementing that strategy through a team and/or with partner organizations. There was a word that kept coming up in our discussions that I’ve been thinking about the last couple of days. The word is also used with great frequency by most Christian “workers”.

The word: ministry.

It seems that in Christian circles the only way to define what you do is to define it as a ministry. Sports ministry, puppet ministry, youth ministry, singles ministry, etc. Churches use it, IMB workers use it, and I’ve decided that I’m not using it anymore.

To me the word ministry screams compartmentalization. It signifies to me that when I’m in ministry mode I’m all about reaching people and being Jesus to them…as if there is another part of my life that’s not ministry mode. And I’m tired of having to define what I do with my life, which I’m trying to live incarnationally, as a ministry.

I want my entire day to be centered around knowing Jesus and making Him known. I choose to do that through a charity organization, but I don’t see this as my ministry. I see it as my life. It’s what I do to be Jesus. If you dig wells for Africans in Kenya why do we call it a ministry. Isn’t it simply your life, sold out for Jesus, which just happens to be expressed through you helping others dig wells. If you reach out to students by kicking a soccer ball around why is it called your sports ministry? Isn’t it you using your gifts to be Jesus to others?

I know the word is used Biblically, but in our Christian culture it has become to us a marker, a thing we strive for…a successful ministry. I’m not striving for a successful ministry. I’m striving to live a missional-incarnational life. I’m striving to help others see Jesus through my life…how I treat my wife, love my kids, and run a charity. That’s not ministry, that’s life.

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2 Responses to “What’s My Ministry”

  1. sb

    22. Nov, 2008

    The only problem is that you are taking away the Christians thunder if you do not allow us to use the word “ministry” anymore. That word elevates what we do to the category of “holy”, whereas everything else is less than “holy”. In other words, if we dig wells for Kenyans as a micro-business then we are evil and greedy after gain…but if we layer it with the word “ministry”, then everything is ok. Obviously this is tongue n’ cheek…great thought.

  2. Choices | cultural dichotomy

    09. Dec, 2008

    [...] know from the Gospels that once his “ministry” started (still don’t like that word) he got a group of guys together and started training them. He had a group of 12 that he was close [...]

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