Listen to the bells of the Salvation Army volunteers. Read signs as you drive by on your way to Christmas shopping that ask for donations for a food drive. One that says “Honk if you love Santa” in red lettering on brown cardboard catches your eye. You think, “I’ll have to drop off some canned goods later.” You put in a few coins or even a $5 bill in the buckets of volunteers. You feel good, like you really helped out the less fortunate.
In this special holiday season, it is easy to get caught up in the moment and donate something to a worthy cause. It makes you feel good and you are satisfied until next year.
Real Ministry
Real ministry doesn’t happen just once a year. It isn’t seen standing in front of the most popular shopping centers or at stop lights with donation signs. Real ministry happens behind the scenes with people organizing those food drives, bagging up groceries and meeting with the recipients. It happens in the long days of dealing with administrative responsibilities, seeking approval for a food or toy drive from local businesses, paying the utility bills at the center to keep the lights on and in many other small, unexciting ways.
That’s not to say that those who are ringing the bells or holding up the signs aren’t important because they are. Every ministry needs those who are enthusiastic and can bring in people like you to donate a few dollars, groceries or toys once a year. But if you really want to get involved in ministry and make a difference, you have to look beyond those volunteers. You have to be willing to go unnoticed, work long hours and be treated with indifference or even hostility by the very people you are trying to help to really understand ministry.
Ministry is Sacrifice
Look at Jesus’ ministry. He gave up Heaven when He came to minister to us. He walked along dusty roads, taught people who wouldn’t listen, healed and helped those who only wanted what He could give them, was rejected, mistreated and crucified.
Most people involved in ministry will never know the level of sacrifice that Jesus experienced, but they will have to give up something. Time spent with the kids at home, a new car or a vacation, or free time on the weekends. They may give up a job promotion because it would interfere with the time they have to devote to ministry.
In most cases, being involved in ministry will mean making sacrifices. When you go beyond the annual food or toy donations and get to the heart of ministry by being involved year-round, you sacrifice a part of yourself. You may never be recognized for your efforts or even see the results of your hard work. But real ministry goes beyond that. You know that you are doing what you were meant to do. You are obeying God’s purpose for your life in giving to others even if they don’t see it. Because God does.
