One of our ministry’s overarching focuses for this semester is on multiplying leadership. The term sounds like something out of an organizations management handbook or a convenient euphemism for ‘replacement’. More specifically in the lovely context of the church or other Christian ministries, a common response towards invitations/challenges towards leadership positions is often the phrase “I’ll pray about it”. Rather than attempt to address the myriad meanings this phrase has taken on, my concern here is not in the process itself nor the praying even, but the related concept of the calling behind it.

The below devotional is taken from Oswald Chamber’s “My Utmost for His Highest” (January 16,2008)

I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: ’Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’ —Isaiah 6:8

When we talk about the call of God, we often forget the most important thing, namely, the nature of Him who calls. There are many things calling each of us today. Some of these calls will be answered, and others will not even be heard. The call is the expression of the nature of the One who calls, and we can only recognize the call if that same nature is in us. The call of God is the expression of God’s nature, not ours. God providentially weaves the threads of His call through our lives, and only we can distinguish them. It is the threading of God’s voice directly to us over a certain concern, and it is useless to seek another person’s opinion of it. Our dealings over the call of God should be kept exclusively between ourselves and Him.

The call of God is not a reflection of my nature; my personal desires and temperament are of no consideration. As long as I dwell on my own qualities and traits and think about what I am suited for, I will never hear the call of God. But when God brings me into the right relationship with Himself, I will be in the same condition Isaiah was. Isaiah was so attuned to God, because of the great crisis he had just endured, that the call of God penetrated his soul. The majority of us cannot hear anything but ourselves. And we cannot hear anything God says. But to be brought to the place where we can hear the call of God is to be profoundly changed.

We don’t need to give the phrase “I’ll pray about it” layers and layers of meaning and risk turning it into a messy strudel of human rationale and logic, nor do we need to meticulously imbue it with truckloads of mysticism either. Those are valid concerns indeed, but they’re ultimately rendered invalid compared to the need for one to focus on His nature instead, to look at your life holistically and see where He’s been leading you. Be it a spiritual multiplier, a committee member, a GIG leader etc. any ministry you join has to be borne out of your ministry with Him.

by His Grace,
deRek (10 more weeks of school!)

I’ve always thought to myself, what exactly is the cost of discipleship? You know the bible makes it very clear that the cost of not following Him is far greater than the cost of following Him is, and yet we struggle so often to make that choice and to live out that choice. Why? Is there some sort of panacea or magic pill we lack? Rational choice theorists would be bewildered…but on the 4th of October, Sister Ying Kheng alerted us to some major pitfalls-many of them oblivious-to avoid in our walk with Him. I share my humble insight and application for some of the major tenets of her message.

Are we missing a miracle?
Sometimes we may ask God, “eh where is my burning bush?” or “how come no manna falls from the sky for me?” Well, are we hardening our hearts to Jesus’ miracles in our daily lives, to what He is more than able to do in us and around us? Are we going to be like the disciples in Mark Chapter 8 who looked at the thousands of hungry souls with a heart lacking of faith and filled with disbelief?

Now remember your own testimony and His provision for you daily. Wait, are these instances too simplistic to sensitize you to His miraculous power? Well, maybe they are, but consider the fact He has no obligation to let any of us live another day, much less live another 10-20 years or so. His love for us is a miracle in itself. Now consider a little further our position as students in NUS… what makes you think we deserve to be here when millions out there are still illiterate?

Can we compel a ministry to serve out of compassion? No, that’s paradoxical. Thus, we need to believe once again, with childlike faith, that God is a God of miracles, and our position here in NUS is a miracle, and our crusade ministry is miracle as well. Let’s ask God to give us that desire to desire Him, so that we will serve out of desire and not merely pushed by duty.

To be unfeeling is to be unfruitful…
- Spurgeon

3 steps we can take…

1. Know that Reality Bites. I think we all know it very well that following Jesus is not easy, and it will invite persecution, criticism, and scrutiny. For every 10 students you encounter in street evangelism, 9 may snub you…friends may ridicule you for going to church the Sunday before a Monday paper…what are you going to do when close friends ask you to petition against 377a? We don’t put ourselves up on a moral pedestal to say, “the world will never understand how much I suffer for God, they are too ignorant and lowly…” Rather, this persecution has got nothing to do with you per say, but if people will be able to look at your responses to tribulation and wonder, “wow, I cannot imagine that God does not exist in his/her life”, then i think…we can truly grasp that the abundant life is not the trouble-free life, but the life-in-God life.
2. Face your Pride. 4 words: Don’t pick and choose. Crusade is just one of many platforms to serve in! But follow where God is leading you. Effectively, we are all in a worship team here on earth, and a precarious position worship team members often face is pride too. Now, imagine your worship leader asks you to wear a certain attire for a service you are playing for and you refuse. Admittedly, the worship attire inherently does not represent your level of servitude to God, but refusing to obey your worship team leader speaks a lot about your pride. It is hard for me to extrapolate this to crusade , but the crux is… don’t pick and choose. The ‘normal’ discipleship group or weekly prayer meeting is no less important than the big scale mass-evangelism events etc. I don’t mean to say “go for all events”. That’s missing the point. Rather, ask yourself, be it crusade or church or whatever, why you do not choose to commit to certain tasks/responsibilities.
3. Fatigue. We need rest, period… just like how you were probably reading this blog entry because you needed a rest from your endless assignments and tutorials. We even need rest from ministry work itself =) Jesus Himself took time away often from the crowds to just pray to the Father. Find time to hideaway. No time? MAKE time to hideaway and talk to the Lord or just busk in His presence. The crusade corner is a godsend in the mornings. Don’t become a starving baker.

by His Grace,
deRek

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