7 Habits A seven week prgram designed t equip peple t live a Christ Driven life at ThrnCreek Church SERVE FAITHFULLY 1
SERVE FAITHFULLY The three questins we ll be lking at this mrning are: Hw has Gd shaped me fr ministry? Hw can I use these gifts fr His kingdm? Hw d I balance this with a busy schedule? Vlunteering in a church all starts ff with yur understanding f what ministry is all abut. Yur attitude, yur cmmitment, yur passin when vlunteering at a church, all starts with yur understanding f what ministry is all abut. 1 Crinthians 12:4 7 (NLT) 4 There are different kinds f spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the surce f them all. 5 There are different kinds f service, but we serve the same Lrd. 6 Gd wrks in different ways, but it is the same Gd wh des the wrk in all f us. 7 A spiritual gift is given t each f us as a means f helping the entire church. Gd has given every ne f us a spiritual gift. The purpse f the gift is t build up the church! Gd has given yu specific gifts nt fr yur wn persnal gain, but fr the benefit f the entire church. 1 Peter 4:10 (NLT) 10 Gd has given each f yu a gift frm his great variety f spiritual gifts. Use them well t serve ne anther. We have a respnsibility t be a gd steward f the gifts that Gd has given us! Reasns fr an unenthusiastic ministry vlunteer: 1) They dn t understand the purpse f ministry. It s all abut them selves. 2) They are in the wrng ministry psitin. They aren t gifted fr what they are ding. 3) They have the wrng mtivatins. They aren t ding it fr Gd. QUESTION 1 HOW HAS GOD SHAPED ME FOR MINISTRY? 1 Crinthians 12:1 (NIV) 1 Nw abut spiritual gifts, brthers, I d nt want yu t be ignrant. We're cnvinced that ne f the primary ways yu learn spiritual gifts is by getting invlved in ministry. 2
Knwing yur spiritual gift is nly part f knwing hw Gd has shaped yu. Rmans 15:20 (NIV) 20 It has always been my ambitin t preach the gspel where Christ was nt knwn, s that I wuld nt be building n smene else's fundatin. Yu have t lk at what yu lve t d. What are the things that really get yu excited? Acts 18:3 (NLT) 3 Paul lived and wrked with them, fr they were tentmakers just as he was. Examples f natural abilities Organize Plan Wrk with yur hands Speak in frnt f a crwd Creative Starting new things Gd will use yur abilities t supprt yur spiritual gifts! Galatians 1:13 14 (NLT) 13 Yu knw what I was like when I fllwed the Jewish religin hw I vilently persecuted Gd s church. I did my best t destry it. 14 I was far ahead f my fellw Jews in my zeal fr the traditins f my ancestrs. Three (3) signs that yu might be in the wrng vlunteer psitin a) Yu feel uncmfrtable. Incidentally, there s a difference frm feeling challenged r stretched and feeling uncmfrtable. If yu re uncmfrtable yu aren t gifted in that psitin. b) It takes yu extra time and effrt. That s a sign it may be the wrng psitin fr yu. c) Yu did a lusy jb. Yu knw it and ther peple knw it. QUESTION 2 HOW CAN I USE THESE GIFTS FOR HIS KINGDOM? Ephesians 4:11 13 (NLT) 11 Nw these are the gifts Christ gave t the church: the apstles, the prphets, the evangelists, and the pastrs and teachers. 12 Their respnsibility is t equip Gd s peple t d his wrk and build up the church, the bdy f Christ. 13 This will cntinue until we all cme t such unity in ur faith and knwledge f Gd s Sn that we will be mature in the Lrd, measuring up t the full and cmplete standard f Christ. 3
In fact, we wuld like yu t nt lk at yurselves as a vlunteer, but lk at yurself as a Ministry Partner. Gd is passinate abut His church. Accrding t VERSE 13, what is the gal f all this? Till we all get t this place where we reach spiritual maturity. Till we measure up t the full and cmplete standard f Christ. When yu use yur gift, it prduces maturity and stability in the church family. Here at TC, we believe peple shuld vlunteer first at their lcal church, then anywhere they chse utside f that. The bible makes it clear that Gd has gifted us s that we culd use that gift at ur lcal church. It s His church, and He wants yu t use thse gifts t build up the church. Gd wants yu t use yur leadership gifts at the church! Dn t lk at the church as the place where yu give yur leftvers. Lk at church as the place where yu give yur best fr Gd! QUESTION 3 HOW DO I BALANCE THIS WITH A BUSY SCHEDULE? Matthew 6:33 (NASB) 33 "But seek first His kingdm and His righteusness, and all these things will be added t yu. Yu always want t keep Gd first in yur life. Yu never want anything t cme between yu and yur relatinship with Gd. If yur relatinship with Gd is right, then yur hme is right, and yur wrk is right, and everything else falls int place. Church is part f that relatinship with Gd. Remember, It s His church. At TC, we ask everyne t serve in tw (2) ministry psitins: First, we ask everyne t be part f a Primary Ministry. This is a ministry which is an extensin f wh yu are. When peple lk at that ministry, they see yu! We want peple t spend the majrity f their time in this ministry. The secnd is a Secndary Ministry. This is a place that yu are willing t serve, but it desn t necessarily reflect wh yu are. There is a place fr yu t serve! 4
Exdus 36:1 (NLT) 1 The Lrd has gifted Bezalel, Ohliab, and the ther skilled craftsmen with wisdm and ability t perfrm any task invlved in building the sanctuary. Let them cnstruct and furnish the Tabernacle, just as the Lrd has cmmanded. We firmly believe Gd has gifted all the peple here at TC, fr everything we need t d at TC accrding t Gd s purpse. We have all the peple we need t fulfill Gd s purpse. This includes yu! Yu can lk in the Sunday mrning Prgram t see a list f ministry pprtunities. There is als a place n the prgram itself. It s a tear ff prtin that yu can fill ut and tear ff and put in the ffering bag. Here s the big step guys yu have t take the first step! Only yu can initiate this. Sign up at https://thrncreek.church/mp assessment. 5