Five Reasons Why You Should Not Do Ministry Alone

So many times us pastors end up doing ministry alone. We don’t mean to, we’ve just gotten really good at it. 

• Good at forgetting whose church it is. 
• Good at relying on our own power. 
• Good at thinking we are the only ones qualified. 
• Good at driving the ministry car with an empty passenger seat. 
• And good at treating a love letter as official correspondence.
  

Used with permission from Manfred Schweda. http://www.thisfabtrek.com/travel-photography.php

Here are five reasons why we think you should not do ministry alone:

1. We should do ministry with Jesus because it’s his church. We work for him and with him. He owns the place. He paid for it. He called us and said he’d never leave us. That he’d be with us.
2. We should do ministry with Jesus because we are powerless without him. He’s our entre into service, and without him, we can’t do anything. Why would we rely on our own power to love, serve, care, and give? He’ll do it through us if we let him.
3. We should do ministry with others in the body because the Spirit of Christ has gifted them, equipped them, called them, and sent them… too! We get to partner with others who complement us and cover the areas we cannot. Every person in the body of Christ is qualified to serve.
4. We should do ministry with Jesus and others because we weren’t created to take the trip alone. When riding in the ministry car, we should not always even be in the driver’s seat! I could get tangled up in a whole lot of metaphorical contortions on this one, but suffice it to say, if you drive alone, you can’t use the diamond lane!
5. We should read, study, and sermon-craft with Jesus by our side. He wrote the book. He lived the love letter to us. When we treat the Scriptures as OFFICIAL CORRESPONDENCE, we lose the heart and soul of the message of Jesus. We should never dismiss the presence of Jesus when making the sausage.

You are facing a new church/school year. You are planning for the fall. You are ramping up for a new ministry year. For the sake of your people and your community, and for the glory of God, don’t do ministry alone!

Enjoy the company of the Savior who loves you and wants to live his grace through you – into the lives of your people. Paul said, “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me” (Gal. 2:20)

You are a pastor, a servant of the Living and Almighty God – an ambassador of the Savior of the world. Whoever you have to minister to this weekend, do so with all of your heart. And do it with Jesus.

Pastor, our prayer for you is “Father, would you use us this weekend, and would you allow each of us to love our people with the love that you have for us? Please encourage each pastor in the way that he or she needs to be encouraged and built up. May they know the confidence that comes from doing ministry with YOU. Amen!”