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Your Struggle Has Meaning
Joshua Singh • Jul 30, 2019
I want you to know, dear ones, what has happened to me has not hindered, but helped my ministry of preaching the gospel, causing it to expand and spread to many people – Phil 1:12 (TPT)
Paul is writing this from a prison cell, when all hell is breaking loose around him.
Paul is a man of experience in 2 Cor 11:23 you find the account of the struggles….
I have worked harder,
been put in prison more often
been whipped times without number
faced death again and again.
Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes.
Three times I was beaten with rods.
Once I was stoned.
Three times I was shipwrecked.
Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea.
I have traveled on many long journeys.
I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers.
I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles.
I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas.
And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not.
I have worked hard and long enduring many sleepless nights.
I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food.
I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm.
Then, besides all this, I have the daily burden of my concern for all the churches.
I wonder why Paul gets to write half of the New Testament…This man was truly unstoppable. Even now, through his words he is impacting, influencing, imparting and transforming lives for Jesus. Do you realise, we get to be and do this too? God is calling you to walk in a greater depth of sacrifice and action. Paul wasn’t a man of just word, He was a man of action. He wanted to know Christ and be like Christ.
Philippians 1:6 (TPT) I pray with great faith for you, because I’m fully convinced that the One who began this glorious work[a] in you will faithfully continue the process of maturing you and will put his finishing touches to it until the unveiling of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Through all that happens in your life, I want you to know that God is maturing you. He’s finishing you to make you look like Christ. It is crazy to see how many people believe in grace but never have seen the grace of God operate in their life. Grace is more than a disposition, it’s a flow, a catalyst, it’s out of grace that we serve God. Grace allows us to function in our true calling, grace empowers us to live above our struggles and suffering.
Don’t underestimate the power of your struggle. It has meaning!
Prayer Point (Pray this out loud)
Father I thank you that you’ve called me to succeed and flourish in every area of life. God I thank you that your grace is sufficient for me. You never give up on finishing what you have started in me. God I pray that I will be faithful to you everyday and that I will steward your grace to glorify your name. Have your way in me. In Jesus name, Amen
Action Point: Now, take a moment and ask God to show you areas you are reluctant in to let God have his way in you
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The term ministry is understood and interpreted differently by many people in the kingdom. So don’t go into ministry to be personally famous or because you are ambitious. Go into ministry because you know God has called you. As I write my thesis and near its completion, I wanted to share my thoughts so far on my journey. It’s been delightful to be a part of a wonderful church and to walk through the process of becoming who God is calling me to be. The call to ministry is a call to equip and empower the people of God for a unique purpose, and expansion of the kingdom. Here are three ideas I have learnt so far in the last couple of months Embrace Process In a generation of instant gratification, ‘process’ is a word that is completely overlooked and undermined. God has clearly been showing me the power of process and how significant it is to the development of a man or woman of God. I would encourage every young person not to rush the process but to work on the character. Running away from process delays your appointed time. Don’t focus on being a big minister, focus on being an effective minister. Prophetic words are an indication of where God may want to take you, but ask God to show you his process and a path. The ‘process’ is a season to develop intimacy and become conversational with God, learning his ways. The process develops your dependency on the Holy Spirit. The process eliminates junk Eliminate Pride If you go into ministry desiring a platform to preach you might not last because the foundation is weak. Pride is a subtle tactic of the enemy. Offence deals with pride Offence tests the condition of your heart Offences will affect your intimacy with God Preachers, teachers, elders, leaders, whoever you are: God tests your heart through the offence! And if you’ve been in church long enough you’ll know that one of the major reasons for people leaving the church is an undealt offence. I think if you’re going to eliminate pride, you need to be processing every offence out of your life or else it becomes a future trap for the enemy to use against you. I love Jesus, He had such a big heart that offence had no room. Extreme Passion If you are in ministry, in order to last you need to have a passion for people. God’s heart is for his children and if there is no passion to see people succeed and to see them fulfilling their purpose then you might just have a career and not a calling. I know today that there are many in ministry that are not serving for people but for a paycheck. One of the things I have reminded myself constantly is that God’s work really matters and that I have ability to influence whether people will be with God or away from God, for eternity. This article is written for the purpose of helping young people thinking to join the ministry or already in ministry so that they keep the focus on Jesus.
This is a special interview with my friend Shreya, It’s been a while since we sat down and shared our conversation publicly. Get UP & CLOSE, hearing life experiences and stories of Shreya Kant. We talk about relationships, church, ministry, film, everything up and close + You’ll hear Shreya stuff you’ve never heard!! Wisdom Wednesday Episode 15 is a bit different this time, I wanted to bring something unique!
Every human being is a spirit man that has a soul that lives in a body. God uses all three parts to build his kingdom. When you’re saved your spirit man is justified before God. In other words, God sees you through the eyes of Jesus as you stand in his righteousness. However, as you come into the kingdom, one intention of the Holy Spirit is to regenerate your SOUL and take you in the journey of sanctification. Sanctification is the process of being purified and processed so that you can produce more fruit for God. My article is not so much about the spirit man, it’s about your soul. I truly believe in the power of the soul and it’s impact on a persons life when it is healthy. The soul is made up of mind, will and emotions. Sanctification is a LIFE LONG PROCESS…. Please never think that when you are saved you will never have pride Or that you will never be offended or hurt, or attacked…. No. I believe many reading this may have been hurt in the past through unmet expectations, broken relationships, a divorce, an undealt offence, or have buried it rather than dealt with it. I want to highlight how offence continues to work in the soul if it not processed. Person A says something to Person B that hurts the heart. Person B can do three things 1 – Go into isolation, bury the issue, never talk openly to a wise person 2 – Go to the Pastor or leader to complain 3 – Go to Person A and restore, reconcile the relationship and move on Most people do 1 and 2 but do not openly go to the person who has hurt them and talk about what the issue is. If you do not deal with the root of offence you live a very unfulfilled life and your perception of people may alter over time. I know some great people with potential that have snuffed out God’s dreams for their life simply because they hold onto things of the past. Do you realise that if Person B is holding grudges and refuses to let go of past wrongs; this type of emotional wound is yoked to a spirit of bitterness and infirmity that can manifest in various crippling illnesses? Do you realise that God is calling you to live in freedom? Friend, my encouragement to you is simple. Dealing with your offended spirit requires you to go and make peace with the person and admit that you’re hurt and reconcile as soon as you can. Pursue peace with all men, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord, watching diligently so that no one falls short of the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness spring up to cause trouble, and many become defiled by it. — Hebrews 12:14 – 15 P.S Don’t post your hurts on Facebook. Prayer for Offense Thank You, Lord, that I walk in love. You said in 1 Corinthians 13 that love is patient and kind. I confess that I am patient with others and I am kind. I do not keep track of wrongs. I do not hold grudges. I am free from offense. I break the power of offense off my life in the name of Jesus. I choose to walk in forgiveness toward others. I choose to release all pain and wounds. Father, I thank You for Your nature, Your love, and Your mercy operating in me toward others. I release all hurts, and I declare Your love is washing over me now in Jesus’s name.