“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. (Pro. 16:18)� Trust and authority issues are difficult for all of us. To be a great disciple of Jesus Christ we must put our trust in a person we cannot see. To be a great minister of the Gospel we must put our trust in a handful of godly individuals who are as broken as we are before the Lord. Good people miss their calling by withholding from either one.
REFLECTION
Effectiveness in ministry requires transparency before God and those the Lord had entrusted as your accountability partners. Random reflection and evaluation is valuable, but insufficient in a fruitful ministry. An effective minister will seek out godly men and women who are willing to prayerfully evaluate the ministry and honestly communicate their praise and, more importantly, reproval. To be productive these evaluations should be regularly scheduled. A minister must be willing to accept criticism.
There will be some practical elements to these evaluations depending on the ministry, such as financial stewardship, and time management. The real issue of transparency lies in the subjective review of the ministry. Ultimately a ministry’s effectiveness is about karpos:
karpos - fruit
1. the fruit of the trees, vines, of the fields
2. to gather fruit (i.e. a reaped harvest) into life eternal (as into a granary), is used in fig.
discourse of those who by their labours have fitted souls to obtain eternal life.
While there is a quantitative aspect to the soul harvest it is a mistake to focus on the numbers. Making disciples is what has been asked of us. We must focus on the transformation of those whose lives we are fortunate enough to be a part. Are the people entrusted to us for discipleship reaping a harvest? Are they surrounded with karpos?
A ministry’s effectiveness is between God and the minister he has called to the task. We cannot compare ourselves to others as a point of reflection. “Be sure to do what you should, for then you will enjoy the personal satisfaction of having done your work well, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else. For we are each responsible for our own conduct.(Gal. 6:4,5)â€?
CONCLUSION
“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Mat. 6:33)â€? Ministry is a privilege extended to the least likely among us. God is not capable of using the wrong tool for the job. We are called to boldness, and I believe we are called to be innovators. “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” (John 14:12 NIV)
