“In Ministry you will have hard times”

“There will be people who don’t like you”

“There will be hard times with your family”

“You will have to make sacrifices”

“There will be days that you wonder, if you should just quit.”

 

All of these and many more statements of warning I heard uttered over and over, time after time as I was informing older preachers that I had chosen to go into ministry. I am thankful for these warnings. The reason that I say I am thankful is because I truly believe that hearing those things truly helped to prepare me for what really was waiting on me.

Just because I say it helped prepare me, does not mean that it made things easy. Even in my short ministry, I have experienced each of these situations listed above.

 

What do you do when…

• You do your best to keep your sermons intriguing enough to capture the attention of the short attention span listeners but you fail?

 

• You try to visit everyone that needs a visit or a phone call but you miss someone on the list?

 

• You try to make as much time for your family as possible but occasionally you have to be away for an emergency?

 

• You try to make sure that no one in your family suffers from any heartache due to your ministry, and yet again you fail?

 

• You try to be the person who is always happy, but some days, you just aren’t?

 

• You take a step back, and notice that not everyone is happy with you?

 

You go back to the Word, and look at what God expects of you.

2 Timothy 2:15- “Do your best…”

When you try to be the best Christian you can be…

When you try your best to be the best preacher you can be…

When you try to be the best father you can be….

When you try to be the best husband you can be…

When you try to be the best “in-law” you can be…

When you try to be the best servant you can be…

 

Just to take a step back and realize that it hasn’t been “good enough” for many people, just remember, – “It is for Him”

 

God does not excuse mediocrity, apathy, or a haphazard approach to life. However, God only requires one thing out of you in each of these area’s… Do your best!