For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me. Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.
Ministry is difficult. If you were to tell me you have never felt like quitting, I would respond by congratulating you on your first week in ministry.
I believe there are five areas in our leadership that, if we get them wrong, we will never last, and we will never persevere in the calling God has for us.
THE FIRST MISTAKE WE SO OFTEN MAKE IS WE DO MINISTRY ALONE.
1. Delegation
There are far too many pastors doing ministry alone. We have bought into this lie that we have big enough shoulders for the entirety of the ministry we lead.
1. We don’t delegate because we don’t trust God with the results. 1 Cor. 3 says God gives the increase.
2. We don’t delegate because our default mode is to do. “If I do this, my pastor will be pleased with me. If I do that, God will be pleased with me.”
3. We don’t delegate because we have a half-hearted view of what eternal rewards are and what ultimate beauty is. Lewis address our self-focused small-mindedness in his book, Weight of Glory.
“We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”
We see the week to week, not the eternal significance of what we are doing.
4. We often don’t delegate because we are building our own kingdom. We are far more concerned with who gets the credit than with who gets the glory.
5. We don’t delegate because we have an improper view of Ultimate authority.
2. Leading under authority
When you come on staff at a church, you have to submit yourself to the pastor you serve. This can only be done to the degree that you have submitted your life completely to Christ.
What does submission to authority look like?
– It’s walking and leading in humility.
– It’s trusting Jesus more than your circumstance.
– It’s not checking your dreams at the door of the church — it’s finding your joy in God.
– It’s not blindly following your pastor off a cliff.
– Submission to authority starts with you submitting your life to Christ ultimately, and as a result of that you walk in humility. Paul talks about our submission to Christ and uses marriage as an example for us:
