Dear Friends,
I often remind church members
that every member is a minister. Every member has a gift or gifts that can be
offered in the service of others. Ministry is just a simple word that mean
serving others, and as members of the body of Christ we should always be on the
lookout for ways to serve others.
When there is a need, some
people will talk about it, others will do something about it.
When Jesus saw hungry
people, He said let’s feed them, and he did something about it. He fed them
(Matthew 14:16).
As ministers and
members of Christ body, we all have gifts and abilities that can be used to
minister and encourage others.
Jon Courson in his New
Testament Application Commentary on Acts 9 comments on a death in the
early church. He writes, Everyone said, “Quick, call for Peter! We’ve got to
pray for a miracle, a resurrection.”
Who died? Was it John, the
apostle? No. Was it James? No, he was already dead. Was it some important heavy
hitter? No, not in the way you might suspect. The person the entire church was
so upset about losing was not an anointed apostle or a dedicated deacon, but a
woman named Dorcas.
Why was the whole church
so upset about losing her? Was she a prophet? No. Was she a teacher? No. She
simply sewed clothes and in so doing, she demonstrated the practicality of
love.
People who say, I can sow
your shirt. I can tune up your car. I can bake you a cake, more than likely
have the gift of ministry.
Many in the church fail to
realize they have something to contribute to the ministry of the body. They
don’t realize how important they are to the church.
Yesterday I shared a
Leadership Thought that struck a chord in the heart of several people. I
mentioned how blessed people were who possessed dogs for they provided such
comfort and wonderful companionship.
A reader responded to the
message and took the time to call and ask me if he could take my dog Maggie to
be groomed. He told me the groomer was a single mom who was struggling
financially and my friend thought he would help her out by providing her with
some much-needed business.
His thoughtful act of
generosity not only ministered to the groomer, but to me as well. I was so touched
by my friend’s generous action that I plan to send the groomer a small gift
that hopefully will be an encouragement to her while helping ease her financial
burden.
Ministry is like
that. Small but thoughtful acts of kindness can be multiplied, and in the
process, people are blessed.
Yesterday I closed my
message by apologizing that it wasn’t a typical spiritual message, and I felt a
little apprehensive about how it would be received. My heart, however, was
ministered to by an encouraging e-mail from a reader.
My friend wrote, “I
believe that the message today was all about the spiritual lesson of sharing
love- and life does not get more important or more spiritual than that in my
humble opinion. Sharing love with anyone, including a dog, is all about our
spiritual connection with God and with others in our world.
Thanks, Leslie, for
ministering to me through your kind words of encouragement, and thanks Brad for
our thoughtful and generous gift.
As you go through your day
today, let me encourage you to think of some small act of kindness you might do
for someone. In doing so, I promise you will bless two people, you, and
the person who receives your kindness.
Yours in faith and
friendship,
Tom
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