The things we do within the four walls of the church are crucial. It is important that we have a choir, that we have musicians, that we have praise singers, that we have preachers, that we have altar workers, that we have ushers, Sunday School teachers, ministers, pastors, etc., those are essential and our church is dependent upon those ministries. But we need to look beyond the four walls of the church. It is what we do outside the four walls that matters that most. It does not matter if we jump and shout for hours on end, if we never witness. It does not matter if we are active in every ministry in our church, if no one we come in contact with on a daily basis knows that we are Christian. I think for too long we have focused our attention within the four walls, and God is calling us to re-focus. He is drawing our eyes to the world.
Going outside the four walls of the church means that we need to reevaluate what a ministry is. Ministry is more than just singing in the choir, being a musician, giving a conference and preaching. Don’t get me wrong, I believe those are so essential, but there are other things that God wants us to do as well. This past year, God has given me the opportunity to speak at different youth regional’s and I am so honored that I have had the opportunity because I have a passion for what I am doing, but as I have gone to each youth regional, in my heart I have prayed to God telling Him I want more than just this. I want to do more than just speak to Apostolic young people, I want more than just to go to different youth services and minister there, I want to go outside the four walls of the church.
I have come in contact with many young people and I will ask them what they want to do and many times they tell me they want to be a soloist, they want to be a praise singer, they want to be a minister, they want to be a pastor’s wife, etc., those are great things to aspire to, but there is so much more. There is so much more that God wants us to do. I have said this many times before, but sometimes we get so caught up in titles and we think titles make and define us. It breaks my heart, and honestly makes me sick to my stomach when I hear about people who plot and scheme and devise ways so that they can get a title. It hurts when I hear of people who think that the title defines who they are. We have for too long elevated certain things above others, we have said that certain ministries are more important than others, but this is so dangerous. Doing this is keeping us from seeing that God wants to use us outside the four walls of the church. Our eyes have focused on certain ministries within the church and we think if we have this ministry we will be someone special, but this is such a false mentality to have.
I believe God is asking us to reevaluate our purpose, reevaluate what we are doing. We might be doing many things within the church, but I believe God is asking what we are doing outside the four walls of the church. I am not even talking about door knocking and passing out tracts, I am talking about praying that God gives us a burden for the lost. I am talking about when we are in the grocery store, praying that God would give us words to speak to someone, I am talking about when we are in school, praying that God would direct us to someone who is searching for truth, I am talking about when we are in college, that we would pray that God would direct us to a major where we can be a light for him, I am talking about when we are walking in our neighborhood that God would give us the courage to ask our neighbor if they have any prayer requests, I am talking about in our work place that we pray that God would speak through us to our co-workers. We have power to reach the lost, but I know for myself, many times fear keeps me from utilizing that power.
Let me say this again as I close this devotional: titles within the church mean nothing. Positions within the church are meaningless. You can be the best praise singer, the best usher, the greatest conference giver, the most powerful preacher, the choir director, etc., but none of that matters if those who you come in contact with on a daily basis don’t know that you are a Christian. I realize that some might disagree with me on this one and I am not saying those things within the church are not important, because I think that they are, but I think our focus has been on those things for too long and consequently we have not focused on what it is occurring outside the four walls. I am talking to myself today and this has been a burden that God has placed in my heart concerning my own life and what I am not doing. I am in no way pointing fingers, if anything I am pointing them at myself. Although my classmates and my family know what I believe in, I know I can be doing so much more. My prayer is that God would use me outside the four walls of the church, I pray that my life would be defined not by just going to church, just dancing and shouting, just giving conferences, but that my life would be defined by what I am doing for God outside the four walls of the church, I pray that you would make that your prayer as well.