What Am I Supposed To Do?

One day as Jesus was walking along a lake he saw a couple of fishermen and He called to them, “Come, follow me.” Matthew 4:19

Jesus went on to call ten others to follow Him and they became known as the twelve disciples. But the call to follow Jesus went out to others that Jesus preached to, and in fact the call goes out to everyone.

As a very young boy I recognized through hearing the Word of God that God was calling me to follow Him. I had no idea where responding to that call would lead me in 2014. I knew His call was a call for me to confess my sins and invite Him into my life as my Savior.

In my teen years I was trying to decide what I wanted to do with my life.  As a senior in high school I began to understand that God was calling me not only to follow Him as a beliver but He was calling me to become a pastor. After my preparation in college and seminary I became a pastor for more than forty years. Many people have referred to me as a “minister.” I am a minister but so is every believer. We are all ministers. Some of us minister as pastors, some as missionaries, some as teachers, most as followers of Jesus in every day life and vocations.

Part of my ministry now is to bereaved parents as Director of BASIS. My role is as a director, but my ministry is simply to hurting, grieving parents, and just as my role as pastor did not make me more of a minister than any other believer in my church, so too, my role as Director does not make me a better or more effective minister to grieving parents than anyone else. God has gifted us all differently but with a purpose to be His ministers

My point here is that God can use you to minister to others. He has a plan for your ministry. The truth is not that God is finding us a place for our gifts, but that God has created us and our gifts for a place of His choosing and we will only find fulfillment when we recognize and follow His call for ministry.

That ministry God has created you for may be as simple as coming along side of another grieving parent, not by offering brilliant words, but just offering your presence and genuine care.

I have learned that in my role as Director of BASIS, many times the most valuable thing I have to offer is not my words but my tears.

May I challenge you to let God lead you to minister in ways He as gifted and prepared you for. Jesus asys, “Come, follow me.” Will you follow Him?