Every Christian a Minister

Every Christian a Minister

    Growing up in a traditional church I thought that the only person who was a minister was the pastor. I never had a clue that every Christian was a minister. In Ephesians 4:12 Paul tells us that all of us are to be equipped for the work of the ministry, which will help build up and mature the Body of Christ. But we will minister in various ways, depending upon our motivational gift(s), our possible ministry gift (verse 11), and how we flow in the manifestation gifts. 

    Not everyone is called, as those with ministry gifts are, to the full-time Christian service of equipping the "saints," but all of us are called to minister in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Most of us will have a full-time job outside the organizational church or a full-time responsibility in the home. We will find, however, that there are plenty of opportunities to minister our gifts to others: the neighbor with a problem, our son's best friend, the elderly shut-in down the street, the wrong number who turned out to be in crisis, the guy at work, the discouraged woman in the prayer group. 

    Here are some specific instances: 

MINISTRY TO NEIGHBORS 

    An illness keeps a woman bedridden for a month. If each of her seven immediate neighbors has a different motivational gift, how will each one express love to her? 

    The perceiver will pray both privately and at her bedside for healing, strength, and endurance. 

    The server will take over meals, offer to do housework, run errands, mow the lawn. 

    The teacher will find it hard to relate to her, but will finally take her some good books and tapes. 

    The exhorter will go right over to encourage her, and share uplifting Scripture. 

    The giver will bring food and other gifts, spend time talking and listening. 

    The administrator will find out what she needs and organize the neighborhood to meet those needs. 

    The compassion person will ask how she feels, empathize, hug, weep, and stay by her bedside. 

MINISTRY IN SUNDAY SCHOOL 

    There's a place for everyone to minister in a Sunday school program. Not everyone will want to teach, but there are plenty of other jobs. 

    The perceiver will want to teach, especially the older youth or the adult classes. 

    The server will prefer to assist a teacher, or help in the nursery, handle the custodial work, or be the Sunday school secretary.     The teacher will aim at teaching the adult or college-age classes, or preparing and providing enrichment material. 

    The exhorter will be happy to teach any age and will be especially good with children and teenagers. 

    The giver will do well teaching any age, and may also want to handle finances, or promote missionary support and offerings.     The administrator will be delighted to be in charge, or be a department superintendent, or teach an adult class. 

    The compassion person will migrate to teaching or helping in the primary age, preschool, or nursery departments. 

MINISTRY IN BIBLE STUDIES 

    Everyone can minister by teaching a Bible study group. But the subject and approach will differ with each gift: 

The perceiver will: 

    1. Spend much time in prayerful preparation. 

    2. Use the Bible as the basic text. 

    3. Focus on subjects like prayer, prophecy, and God's will. 

The server will: 

    1. Prefer to use prepared materials. 

    2. Do a detailed preparation of the lesson. 

    3. Focus on practical subjects that demonstrate faith. 

The teacher will: 

    1. Want to prepare his own lesson plans. 

    2. Spend much time in biblical research. 

    3. Prefer teaching an entire book of the Bible or a thematic topic. 

The exhorter will: 

    1. Use prepared materials. 

    2. Draw from life experience for illustrations. 

    3. Choose subjects that help people live victoriously. 

The giver will: 

    1. Enjoy doing his own preparation. 

    2. Tend to gear each lesson to win someone to Christ. 

    3. Focus on subjects like evangelism and missions. 

The administrator will: 

    1. Organize materials into his own special lesson plan. 

    2. Bring in resource people for added interest. 

    3. Cover broad subjects from a variety of aspects. 

The compassion person will: 

    1. Use prepared materials. 

    2. Be spontaneous in teaching methods. 

    3. Focus on God's love and right relationships. 

MINISTRY TO THE BODY OF CHRIST & OTHERS 

Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:16 that the Body of Christ actually grows and builds itself up in love and maturity as each part does its work properly. Every person is needed. Every person ministers to others, knowingly or unknowingly. 

    Perhaps you've never thought of some of the spontaneous things you do to help others as being ministry, but they are. We are naturally drawn to those types of ministries that enable us to use our motivational gifts. If you don't function in your giftedness in ministry to others, there is a lack in the Body of Christ. You are needed! 

    To demonstrate the wide variety of service areas available we've compiled the following  list, grouped under general headings, although many overlap. We have indicated which motivational gift usually ministers in these areas, but that does not mean that other gifts do not minister in those areas, too. Two other possibilities are listed in parentheses. Also, your secondary gift may lead you into areas of ministry that your primary gift might not otherwise be drawn to. 

    As you study this list ask the Holy Spirit to trigger ideas for ways in which you could minister. 

Possible areas of ministry

PRAYER AND HEALING MINISTRIES: Perceivers (givers and compassion people)

PRACTICAL MINISTRIES: Servers (gives and compassion people)

EDUCATIONAL MINISTRIES: Teachers (administrators and perceivers)

COUNSELING MINISTRIES: Exhorters (perceivers and compassion people)

OUTREACH MINISTRIES: Givers (perceivers and  exhorters)

LEADERSHIP MINISTRIES: Administrators (exhorters and teachers)

CARING MINISTRIES: Compassion person servers and givers)

CREATIVE MINISTRIES: All the gifts (depends on talents and interests)

    In addition to all of these personal and church-related ministries there are hundreds of civic, environmental, and para-church organizations in which you may be led to be involved. Just remember to keep your priorities straight: God, family, job, and then outside ministry.