One of the things every pastor needs to consider and develop is a philosophy of ministry. It has been my philosophy of ministry to not run programs if there are not people in the congregation who feel called and have a heart to do that ministry. I like to refer to that as organic ministry. If we are not raising up people from within the church who want to take on a ministry as their own, we don’t need to be generating programs just to be able to say we have that program. The Holy Spirit gifts individual believers with gifts for ministry. Yes, that means you have been gifted for ministry by the Holy Spirit if in fact you are trusting by faith alone in Jesus Christ alone as Savior and Lord. Now the question is, “what is your ministry?” If people in the church don’t step up and take on the challenge of ministry it is not going to happen because the pastor can’t do it all. We got a good taste of that truth last year when we chose to cancel our Vacation Bible School because we just didn’t have anyone willing and ready to step up and lead that ministry.
I’m very happy to say that people have risen to the challenge this year and it is a real blessing for the church not only to have VBS, but to have people who are exercising their gifts for the glory of God and the advancement of the kingdom. So you may be asking at this point, “what does that have to do with me?” Well the answer is this, you may not be called to be a part of running VBS, but that doesn’t mean you are excused from supporting your church and its outreach to the community. You can support VBS in a number of ways that will not require your presence during the fourth week of June. First, you can pray for the success of VBS. This in itself is a big job, because there is much to pray for; leaders, teachers, helpers, kids all need your prayers. Pray that the gospel would be presented clearly and that the Holy Spirit would prepare hearts to hear and receive it. Pray for the provisions we need to run the ministry. Pray for many who don’t attend church to come and hear about Jesus. Second, you can really help by inviting people to participate. You have access to children outside our church who might really benefit from VBS. Be bold to invite your friends, family members and any other children you may come in contact with. Third, you can help by providing materials that will be needed. There will be more about that published in the bulletin and on the website.
Yes, you can be a part of VBS without really leaving your home. We need to pull together as a church and fully support those ministries and programs the Lord raises up people to pursue and coordinate here at Faith Church. I hope you will participate at some level and put God’s gifting to work in your life for His glory.
