How to Survive Serving in Church

Galatians 6:9

Being a church leader creates a dramatic paradigm shift…when you are a leader everything changes.

When you become a leader, you lose the right to think about yourself.

If you acknowledge you are a leader, then being at church is different for you:

Spiritually: You move from a receiver to a giver. Mentally: You get to think about what others take for granted. Physically: You get to fix it, arrange it, clean it, and then do it all over again.

Paul said even though you are exhausted; keep ministering because you’ll see it is worth it.

The Thrill Factor - (Luke 15:4-10)

As leaders we don’t look at church the way everyone else does; the idea that you are going to sit and receive is different for us because of the responsibilities that we possess. As leaders we do enjoy church; however, our joy comes from watching others receive. If we lose the thrill factor it will be difficult to sustain a serving attitude. The Nourishment Factor (Matthew 11:28-30)

Leaders understand that in a service they are the front-line care givers; so they must find alternative ways of receiving. This isn’t optional in leadership, if you give you must seek, if you don’t seek you will not find. Whose responsibility is it to see that your soul is nourished? It is your responsibility (2 Timothy 1:6). Leaders must work at soul management:

i. Prayer (Mark 1:35; 6:46)

ii. Bible Study (1 Timothy 5:17-18)

iii. Being full of the Holy Spirit (Acts 6:3; 1 Corinthians 14:4; 15).

iv. Sit in one service, soak in another (Hebrews 10:23-25; Acts 2:42).

v. Recreation & vacation (Exodus 20:8-11)

1. Whatever sparks your soul you must do it and do it regularly.

The Management Factor (1 Timothy 3:4-5)

You must lead yourself in order to lead others. It’s not about finding balance; it’s about managing our time according to proper priorities.

i. God

ii. Spouse

iii. Children

iv. Work

v. Ministry

We must prune the things that are unfruitful and even the things that are somewhat fruitful in order to be more fruitful (John 15:2). Remember to take time to sharpen your axe (Ecclesiastes 10:10). The Gift Factor (Romans 12:6-8)

While there will always be times when you must “pull the ox from the ditch” (Luke 14:5), you will find that you are more energized by working within your gifting (1 Corinthians 12:6). Your gift will make room for you, so don’t feel the need to compete with other people (Proverbs 18:16; Galatians 2:7-9). The God Factor (Genesis 1:2)

As leaders we all struggle with finding the balance of details and distrust.

i. When does focusing on the details cause you to forget to trust?

ii. Leadership hits the tipping point when what we think and do is true but it is no longer filtered through an attitude of trust.

1. If I don’t think about it then who will?

2. If I don’t do it who will?

3. Without trust these thoughts become unrealistic and impossible to fulfill.

The Genesis Principle must never be overlooked.

i. Without form: This Hebrew word also means confusion and chaos.

ii. The Principle: Even in chaos the Spirit of God moved.

1. As leaders we can never forget that in chaos God can still move.

a. Do we want things to be perfect? Yes.

b. Do we strive for perfection? Yes.

c. But we never forget God can work when things are less than perfect.

2. In math they call it the chaos theory. In ministry it is not a theory; it’s a reality. There are always varying levels of it.

3. In math, the chaos theory says that even in chaotic equations there are things you can count on. In ministry, regardless of the level of chaos we can count on God. Regardless of how much we have to do, trust must be part of the equation.

Galatians 6:9