STAGES OF PIONEERING WORK IN THE MINISTRY 8

1. "BUT WHEN IT PLEASED GOD, WHO SEPARATED ME FROM MY MOTHER'S WOMB AND CALLED ME THROUGH HIS GRACE,

2. to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood."
   Galatians 1:15,16 (NKJV)

3. "WHO HAS SAVED US AND CALLED US WITH A HOLY CALLING, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began

4. TO WHICH I [Paul] WAS APPOINTED A PREACHER, AN APOSTLE, AND A TEACHER OF THE GENTILES."
   2 Timothy 1:9,11 (NKJV)

• Ministers

• As a minister, if you have a need, you have to be patient with God and allow Him to use whoever He wishes to use in meeting the need.
LET God use the method and means He likes or wants.

• Do not be in a hurry to get your personal and ministerial needs met; God may want to use it as a medium of blessings for some people—to meet specific needs in their lives.
  BE sensitive to God’s leadings and let Him lead you on how to go by it, about meeting your personal or ministry needs.
  IF you did take your own way, without asking God the method or means He wanted to use in meeting such needs. YOU resolve to use human wisdom like borrowing, begging, asking the wrong people, going to relatives, and whatever; you deny God of blessing the people He had intended to use for that purpose.

• ALSO Every need in your life and ministry is for the lifting or blessings of some people.
IF you went ahead of God, you may abort such a plan.

• ALSO AT times the people God had intended to use may be slow in responding to the need or may shy away from it—dodge it.

DO not be discouraged and impatience, let God have His way.

• If those whom God has laid in your heart refused to do it, WAIT let God direct you on what next to do, do not go ahead of God and do it in your own way.
• The fact that the need is a pressing need and it does need an urgent attention does not mean you should be impatient.
• God might be using it to test your patience and loyalty.
  IT might be a test!
• So far it is God who is handling the matter, you shall not be put to shame.
• God will show up at the appropriate time.
  Remember, He does all things, whatever He wishes to do, for His name to be glorified.
  AT such a time, pray, pray, and pray.

• At such a time some may deceive you when you share the need with them.

• Some may abscond and abandon you.
• Some may want to despise you.
• Some may want to use the situation to control and manipulate you, believing you are vulnerable and want to take any advantage of you.
• Some may want to hold you to ransome, use your situation to keep you captive, and be demanding some things from you.
• Mostly these happen to the ministers who are impatience who are going to the people to ask for assistance without God's leading and enough prayer.
• If you allowed God and waited patiently, He will do it, meet your needs, without humiliation, but with joy and gladness—without degrading you.

• God uses all the disappointments from the people to train and teach His ministers on how not to rely on man—you would not be disappointed.

• Let God be your source, your focus should not be on any man, but on God: "I will lift up my eyes to the hills—from whence comes my help? MY HELP COMES FROM THE LORD, WHO MADE HEAVEN AND EARTH (Psalm 121:1,2).
• Know that any human being can misbehave and let you down.
• Another truth is that when God sees that your gaze, focus, is being shifted from Him to something or someone else, He will allows such to disappoint you or leave you at the time you need them most.

• Lastly

• Make sure you hear from God before you share your personal or ministerial needs with anyone or the congregation.
• Sow seeds towards your needs.
  IF you have a financial need, sow a seed towards it: "for whatever a man SOWS, that he will also reap" (Galatians 6:7).
• At such a time of distress pray and add fasting to your prayer.
• Do not murmur and be impatience, but do praise God that He may have His way in your situation.
• Know that God will not allow you to be put to shame, or be tested more than you can handle: " No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, WHO WILL NOT ALLOW YOU TO BE TEMPTED BEYOND WHAT YOU ARE ABLE, BUT WITH THE TEMPTATION WILL ALSO MAKE THE WAY OF ESCAPE, THAT YOU MAY BE ABLE TO BEAR IT" (1 Corinthians 10:13).

• You will not fail in Jesus' name.
Peace!