Author: Theodore Mawuli Viwotor || Minister of the Gospel
Every ministry in the church is of importance to God and to the building of the Body of Christ. Some ministries may appear more attractive, glamorous and lucrative but all are important and need each other.
Whether you clean the seats, sweep the auditorium or prophesy, whatever service you render, which is your ministry, it matters much and carries a lot of value and it is significant Imagine going to church to find the place dirty and the seat dusty; service would have to be delayed to ensure the place is put in order first.
However, because that service is automatically rendered by someone we might never see at work, we tend to ignore or look down upon it. Consciously or unconsciously, we have found a way of classifying ministries to the point that we even end up comparing them, when, in effect, they are all unique and matter much.
One discouraging attitude in Christendom today is the tendency to make one look like they are contributing nothing to the house of God. This could let a person denigrate their own ministry, leading to backsliding.
Many ministries have died or gone down because they have been made to look inferior, insignificant or useless. It is not surprising that, many evangelists, pastors and teachers are turning themselves into prophets because that is the ministry in vogue.
The truth is that, no ministry is useless or insignificant; all ministries matter and that is why they exist.
There was an incident in the days of Elisha that points to the importance of every ministry and the way we tend to downplay others ministries though they play vital roles in our lives.
In 2 Kings 4, Elisha was informed of the death of the Shunammite’s son and was called upon to come and resurrect him. The woman ran to the Man of God and was restrained by Gehazi, who was his disciple or servant. Elisha took up the challenge to go and bring the child back to life.
Interestingly, he gives his staff to Gehazi and asks him to ran and lay it on the face of the little boy. He did accordingly. However, when he lay the staff on the body, Bible says, nothing happened.
Yes NOTHING happened when Gehazi placed the staff on the child. “And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing.” 2 Kings 4: 31
At this point, it was presumed that Gehazi did nothing and the running to the body to place the staff was not just powerless but useless and wasteful. What is the essence of him running all this while to place the staff on the body with nothing happening?
It would be remembered that, due to the urgency of the matter, Elisha warned him not to greet anyone on the way, apparently to avoid distraction, leading to delay.
Gehazi might has been discouraged and felt he was of no us and who knows how others would see him. This happens to many ministries when the impact of their work is not felt.
The spiritual truth is that, what Gehazi did, was of as much significance as what Elisha did by lying on the body, which eventually brought him back to life. Though Bible said nothing happened, because those around saw nothing, there a great work done in the realms of the spirit.
From a spiritual point of view, Gehazi’s work was to move fast enough to block the spirit of the boy from going away, which would have made it impossible for Elisha to bring him back to life. Time was of the essence, thus speed was needed to block the spirit from going.
Gehazi didn’t possess the spiritual ability but had the speed; Elisha had the spiritual ability but didn’t have speed. If he didn’t go there in time, Elisha would have missed it, no matter how anointed he was.
In a case like this, one can only expect collaboration and coordination in view of the fact that, none had it all. No ministry is perfect just as no ministry is useless. Ministries are interdependent and they all matter most.
The woman might not respect Gehazi’s role or his ministry but God, who sees beyond what humans see, values it and institute it to make Elisha’s ministry complete.
Don’t get discouraged by what people say or think about your ministry; it matters much to God and impacts a lot of people, even if they don’t see or know it.
The parts of the body that keep the body going and that could just disable it if they go wrong, are the ones that we do not see or notice. However, they regularly work to keep us alive. The kidney is a small organ we never see but its malfunction can send the entire body to an early grave.
Each and every ministry is important and yours in the church matters most. God rewards us according to how we minister, irrespective of how big or small our ministry is. Don’t be discouraged by what others think or say about your ministry. Look up to God, the One who rewards.
Theodore Mawuli Viwotor
Minister of the Gospel
0209360800
mviwotor@yahoo.com
