Text: Act 7:20-34
Memory verse:
”A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher.“
Luke 6:40 NKJV
Whatever ministry you are called into, your level of training or preparation will determine if you will make full proof of that ministry or not, gifting, talent, anointing, or intelligence not withstanding. Lack of training or ill preparation is like an unprocessed gold or half-baked cake. As processing brings out the hidden value of raw gold, training or preparation brings out the best in you. Though the cake is delicious and nutritious, half-baked cake is unpleasant to the taste and harmful to your health. “The people of Israel mingle with godless foreigners, making themselves as worthless as a half-baked cake!“ (Hos 7:8 NLT).
Untrained or ill-prepared ministers turn blessings to curses. They bring reproach to the work of the ministry and eventually their fall or the fall of those they minister to (1 Tim 3:6 NLT). They are risks to both themselves and others (1 Tim 4:16).
Therefore, it is certainly not enough to know your God-given ministry. You also need to be trained in it or be prepared for it. There are so many gifted ministers who have made a shipwreck of their faith because they impatiently jumped into ministry after experiencing a move of the anointing in their lives. But our Lord Jesus didn’t set that example for us. Even though He was the Son of God, He spent about thirty years of His life preparing for a ministry that would last for about three and a half years! He spent about ninety percent of His life preparing for a ministry that took about ten percent of His lifetime! The result of His ministry is what we are still experiencing today, after over two thousand years!
What about Moses? He spent about two-thirds of his life preparing for a ministry that took about one-third of his lifetime! Out of his one hundred and twenty years lifetime, he spent eighty years preparing for the rest forty years of ministry! He spent forty years in the palace of Pharaoh and another forty years in Midian on the backside of the desert. He was called into the ministry of leading the children of Israel to the promised land at his eightieth year. Eighty years to prepare for a forty years ministry!
Friends, don’t skip the process of training or preparation if you desire to fulfill your ministry. May His grace on you not be wasted in Jesus’ name.
Prayer points
1. Father, I receive Your grace to be patient and to be committed to training and preparation for ministry in Jesus’ name.
2. Father, l submit myself to the training of the Spirit through human vessels, in Jesus’ name.
Today’s declarations
1. The depth of my preparation for ministry will determine my impact.
2. The process I jump in the preparation for ministry will show up later in ministry.
Contact: pastor@thf.org.ng