Baby Steps

I've had a thought on my mind that I'm going to expand on Sunday. But I wanted to get it out there and let people start thinking about it. It comes from Luke 19:11-26. It's the Parable of the Ten Minas. Click the link and read the parable before you go on.

I've been thinking about how practical God is in the way that he guides us. The principle in this parable is that those who can be entrusted with a little will also be trusted with a lot. How sensible! This should ring true with any parent, project leader, administrator, business owner, or anyone else who is in a position of authority over others. When you have a task that needs to get done but the person to whom it is assigned falls through, you would never turn around and give them a BIGGER task! At the very least you would give them another task of similar size and start training them up in responsibility, follow through, diligence, etc. Someone that cannot fulfill the most menial task would be destined to fail if they were assigned something much bigger.

God works the same way. Sometimes it's financially, as on the surface of this parable. As you are a faithful steward of your resources, you will find your money going farther and, in some cases, strange blessings will come your way because you are wise, disciplined and faithful. God says that if you are wise with a little, the same principles will cause you to be wise when you have a lot. If you are foolish with a little, you would likely be foolish if you suddenly had plenty.

This parable goes deeper, though, and God treats our spirit the same way. We often want to know God's specific plan. We want to know what he has in store for us. Where to go next, what to do next, etc. Maybe you are not in a time of spiritual plenty. Maybe you want more from God. You want him to reveal himself, or for a spiritual relationship with him to just "happen." What this parable teaches is that you have to be faithful with what you've got. Are you busy? You will always be. Make time for God now. Make him a priority now. Are you financially strapped? That will likely not change too much unless you start changing your money principles now. Do you not feel like God is close? Do things to close the gap and build that relationship now. Don't wait for him to talk to you out of the clouds. Be a faithful steward of the position you are in today. When you prove that you can be trusted with a little, God will often begin to entrust much more to you.

Re:define Ministry!

Welcome to the new blog for Re:define Ministry! Re:define is an exciting next step for the college-age and career ministry at Adventure Church. The name was not chosen arbitrarily, but instead is a meaningful statement of what we intend to do! Our goal in every element of our ministry is to re:define what ministry looks like! This blog is one facet of a ministry that seeks to fulfill the great commission, creating followers that are madly in love with Jesus Christ. Here are the ways we're going to re:define ministry:

• We believe that the church is the brotherhood of ALL BELIEVERS, and will seek unity with those that claim that Jesus Christ is the one true savior for a creation in need of saving. (1 Corinthians 12:13)
• We believe that WE ARE ALL MINISTERS! Ministry doesn't just happen on a weekly basis with one qualified paster preaching at an audience. It happens out where people are. In the workplace, in our families and in our lives, we are all called to be ministers to those around us. (1 Peter 2:9)
• We are called to be set apart from the world. We are to have standards for success, behavior and purpose that are separated from those standards held by the World. (1 Peter 1:13-15)
• Faith in Jesus is not meant to be stagnant. It is not a habit. It is not a tradition. It is given to us by God to find and fulfill our ultimate purpose as his creation. It is meant to inform our lives and teach us about his character. (Ephesians 3:16-19)
• Faith starts from within. Outward signs of goodwill and service are only as good as the inward motivation that causes them. We believe that a life of faith means taking time to let God shape your spirit inwardly. (James 3:9-12; Matthew 12:35)
• We can do nothing without the power of the Holy Spirit. God seeks after us when we are lost, beckons us to belief and saves us of his own initiative. The Spirit is his presence among us that lives in us and nudges us towards Godliness. (John 14-16, Ephesians 3:16-19)

For too long, "Ministry" has been characterized as something only a select few are "called" to do. While only some are called by Christ to make ministry a vocation, ALL are called to be a light to the world around them, shining God's character into the darkness of this world. While this blog's header might say young adults ministry, this is not an age-specific, or even life-stage-specific mission. This blog will be an attempt at motivation, hopefully empowering the reader to step aside and let the Spirit work in them. So follow, like, tweet, facebook, digg and buzz the blog. Subscribe to it yourself or pass it on to a friend and let's start a movement that re:defines ministry as we know it!