What Would Be Left?

Perhaps the most challenging and haunting question you can ask yourself as a ministry leader is this:

“If my role at church was to end tomorrow, what would be left of my faith?”

It’s a question I ask myself constantly because working in ministry can often leave people confused about what we do at work and who we are in life.  After all, people in ministry are there in the first place because of our faith.

But at one point in ministry I found my bible reading was largely focused around what I needed to read for work.  I realized my prayer life was centered on concerns related to the ministry.  And my relational circle was largely comprised of people who were associated with the church.

Which would have meant, that if my role at church was to have ended, my faith would have needed a serious reorientation.

Ministry leaders:

When was the last time you prayed about something that has nothing to do with your church, your role, or your ministry?

When was the last time you read through a bible passage that you have zero plans on teaching?

When was the last time you sat down with a friend who doesn’t know and doesn’t care that you’re in ministry?

The best thing you can do as a ministry leader to ensure your faith is vibrant, alive and authentic regardless of what might happen tomorrow is this: pursue a spiritual walk that has little to do with work.

Here are three things you can do to help you pursue that:

Start a bible reading plan that’s completely independent of anything work related.

Pray like you didn’t work for a church.  I’m not saying don’t pray for church related things.  I’m just saying for at least half your prayer time, focus on other things.

Pursue authentic relationships outside your congregation and local ministry network.

Like you, I hope to be at this for decades more.  But maybe one of the keys to keeping that journey fresh and alive is pursuing God like we weren’t in ministry at all.