When David was giving final instructions to his son Solomon he said this:
“Now set your mind and heart to seek the Lord your God. Arise and build the sanctuary of the Lord God, so that the ark of the covenant of the Lord and the holy vessels of God may be brought into a house built for the name of the Lord.” (1 Chronicles 22:19, ESV)
Notice the order of the commands. Prior to building the temple, Solomon is instructed to set his mind and heart to seek God. More specifically, he is instructed to seek the Lord God. The ESV, along with most other translations, follows the Jewish tradition of using the word Lord in place of the covenant name of God which is Yahweh or Jehovah. Solomon is not enjoined to pursue spirituality, he is encouraged to seek a relationship with the God of the Bible.
It is out of the relationship with God that the service to God is to flow.
Many churches, with their emphasis upon service, have unknowingly pushed people toward getting this backward. I have been in churches where the pastor, from the pulpit, would verbally reprimand those who were not “about the Lord’s work.” The danger in this is that people serve out a sense of obligation or guilt.
Instead, we are called to be in relationship with Jesus. That relationship should shape the activities we pursue and change our desires. This change will result in the desire to serve God. Service with this motivation is a far different thing than service out of obligation or guilt.
God does not need my service to accomplish his will, nor does he need yours. In his grace, he allows us to participate with him in the accomplishment of his will.
Do not allow a church leader or anyone else manipulate you into service out of a sense of guilt or obligation. Chances are that the ministry for which the pastor is begging people to serve is not one that God thinks important. I have seen too many “ministries” that are put on life support that should have been allowed to die. Resist the urge to keep an outdated ministry alive.
Relationship then service. Keep the first thing first.
Dayna Renee Hackett Bickham says
May 14, 2013 at 11:37 AMI have been struggling with balance recently. In the last year I have taken on teaching a class of young girls, designing and creating a bulletin for each week’s service, blogging full time, writing a book, going on mission trips and all of this is behind raising and serving my family. Right now, I am in a bit of a flounder. All the services I perform for the body are good things, but I am not sure they are necessary things. How would you advise me to choose what to let go of?
Mark McIntyre says
May 15, 2013 at 6:12 PMHere are some thoughts in response to this:
I suggest you identify your spiritual gift and how has God called you to use it. Then drop one or more of the activities where you are not using your gift according to God’s calling.
Keep in mind that the list of things we can do is much longer than the list of things we should do.
Another way to go about this is to list the activities you do for the church and prioritize them by how they energize you. If you are operating in your gifting, the activity will be a blessing to you and to those you serve. After you prioritize, then drop the one that ranks last on the list and keep dropping activities until you feel that you are balanced.
And always remember that it is always OK to say no when asked to do something.