Choosing God's Road

I will never forget the turning point that came in my deputation ministry. I had been involved in deputation for almost three years. I worked very hard during that time but could not raise the support needed to leave for the field. I just did not see the results that I expected to after three years. In the fall I took part in a missions conference at my brothers church. It was a great time of fellowship and encouragement with other Believers. But I did an absolutley horrible job with my presentations. If the church itself had burned down while I presented my ministry it would not have gone any worse! It was then that I realized something had change with the way I did ministry.

My first thought was to develop a new strategic plan for the deputation ministry. While strategic plans are not a bad thing God challenged me to do something very different. That was read books which would help prepare me for ministry. So I began a routine of spending a few hours reading at my parents kitchen table every day. I started out with books on leadership, and soon had read all of the books I had on the subject.

Over the following months I read books on relationships, growth, counseling, church planting, spirituality, strategic planning, and teaching among many others. As I read those books God began to give me a clear understanding of what it was he wanted me to do in my deputation ministry. It was then that I realized why my deputation ministry was not growing. I was using my own wisdom to make decisions concerning the ministry itself. And as long as I relied upon my own wisdom God could not bless me in the way he wanted to.

So as I read God's Word and other books I slowly changed the way I did ministry. This time instead of walking in my own wisdom, I did things the way God wanted me to. The result was amazing. In one year I raised almost the exact amount of support that had taken me three years to raise. This was not because of my confidence or enthusiasm, or words. Instead it was because I chose to walk God's road and obey his will instead of walking my road and obeying the sinful nature.