12 Ways to Rekindle Your Passion for Ministry (part 3)
13/07/20 Filed in: Pastor | Church Leadership
Re: “to do something again”. 
Kindle: “to set something on fire”.
Rekindle: “to set something on fire again”.
This last definition implies that what is being rekindled was once on fire. There once was heat and light coming from it. But the implication also is that the heat and light are dimming, if not gone altogether.
When that happens to your pastoral ministry, what do you do. So far we have looked at six activities that help rekindle your ministry passion. They are found here and here.
Now we move onto three more.
I think that is still a great remedy, especially when pastoral ministry is cold and dreary. Even the most positive optimist is going to struggle in ministry from time to time. It is then that rehearsing your blessings is so vital. You are reminded that God has been good, is good, and certainly will be good. You are reminded that it’s not ALL negative and hard and dreary and cold. There certainly have been positive and easy and bright and warm times as well. Rehearse when you have seen God at work, and let the blessings of that sink into your soul.
One of my heroes that helps me fight that thought tendency is Moses. If you divide his life into thirds, his best years were all at the end! The first and second thirds prepared him for the great task God gave him in the last third. I think an interesting biblical study would be to see who else would fit this model: Ruth, Samson, Elijah, King Manasseh, the disciples, Paul, etc. There are plenty of examples of people who kept moving forward into new expressions of serving the Lord.
The best years are NOT behind you if you keep looking forward to where God is leading you and join Him on that journey.
Look, people can be draining – even for you extroverts! I’ve written – and will write more in the future – about getting alone to recharge your batteries. Even though people can be frustrating at times, working to help them grow to Christlikeness is what gives you such great satisfaction! So stick at it, making sure to recharge so you can be the best version of yourself.
However, there are people that you need to release from your life. Consider the number of co-workers the apostle Paul had, and the few times he released people because they were no longer healthy for him and the ministry God had called him to. Pastor, there is more than likely some people in your life that are a constant drain on your ministry passion, sometimes even colleagues. I encourage you to look at this next graphic and consider whether you are investing your energy in relationships that carry these qualities.
One of my favourite verses in the Bible is Romans 12:18 - If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. I love the first part of that verse. It’s NOT possible to live peaceably with all; some people just don’t want to enter that kind of relationship. They enjoy keeping you off balance, manipulating you, talking behind your back, undermining you, etc. Those relationships will suck the life out of you. Release yourself from them! When you do, you will find how much they were negatively impacting your passion for ministry, and you will be well on your way to rekindling that same passion.
Which of these three do you need to implement first and right now? Pastor, you have a great work to do. Rekindle your ministry passion and re-join the Lord in reaching your community for Him.
Kindle: “to set something on fire”.
Rekindle: “to set something on fire again”.
This last definition implies that what is being rekindled was once on fire. There once was heat and light coming from it. But the implication also is that the heat and light are dimming, if not gone altogether.
When that happens to your pastoral ministry, what do you do. So far we have looked at six activities that help rekindle your ministry passion. They are found here and here.
Now we move onto three more.
7. Rehearse the Blessings
One of my enduring childhood church memories is sitting in church on a cold, dreary Sunday night – having just woken up from a great Sunday afternoon nap and being somewhat dragged to the building – and then finding it was “favourites night”. This was when people got to choose which hymn they wanted us all to sing. Invariably, Count Your Blessings was chosen by one of the older people. And away we would go – singing only “the first and the last”. I confess I didn’t understand a lot of the bigger words, but I did understand this: the answer for having to sit in church on a cold, dreary Sunday night when you just wanted to stay home was to “count your many blessings; see what God hath done”.I think that is still a great remedy, especially when pastoral ministry is cold and dreary. Even the most positive optimist is going to struggle in ministry from time to time. It is then that rehearsing your blessings is so vital. You are reminded that God has been good, is good, and certainly will be good. You are reminded that it’s not ALL negative and hard and dreary and cold. There certainly have been positive and easy and bright and warm times as well. Rehearse when you have seen God at work, and let the blessings of that sink into your soul.
8. Refocus on the Future
The older you get, the more history you have behind you, and the more tendency you have to remember the good ol’ days rather than look forward to what’s coming up next. The more you do that, the more those good ol’ days feel like they were the best years of your life. The future just doesn’t hold as much promise anymore. You find yourself slowing and coasting – trying to drag your feet to slow your entrance into the “hopeless years.” Well, if your belief is that the best years are behind you, you are certainly going to live into that.One of my heroes that helps me fight that thought tendency is Moses. If you divide his life into thirds, his best years were all at the end! The first and second thirds prepared him for the great task God gave him in the last third. I think an interesting biblical study would be to see who else would fit this model: Ruth, Samson, Elijah, King Manasseh, the disciples, Paul, etc. There are plenty of examples of people who kept moving forward into new expressions of serving the Lord.
The best years are NOT behind you if you keep looking forward to where God is leading you and join Him on that journey.
9. Re-evaluate Your Relationships
“Ministry would be great if it wasn’t for people”. How many times have you been at a pastor’s conference and heard that half-serious joke? Ministry is a lot about bringing people closer to God, and as long as people are involved in that task, the pastor will experience some level of frustration.Look, people can be draining – even for you extroverts! I’ve written – and will write more in the future – about getting alone to recharge your batteries. Even though people can be frustrating at times, working to help them grow to Christlikeness is what gives you such great satisfaction! So stick at it, making sure to recharge so you can be the best version of yourself.
However, there are people that you need to release from your life. Consider the number of co-workers the apostle Paul had, and the few times he released people because they were no longer healthy for him and the ministry God had called him to. Pastor, there is more than likely some people in your life that are a constant drain on your ministry passion, sometimes even colleagues. I encourage you to look at this next graphic and consider whether you are investing your energy in relationships that carry these qualities.
One of my favourite verses in the Bible is Romans 12:18 - If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. I love the first part of that verse. It’s NOT possible to live peaceably with all; some people just don’t want to enter that kind of relationship. They enjoy keeping you off balance, manipulating you, talking behind your back, undermining you, etc. Those relationships will suck the life out of you. Release yourself from them! When you do, you will find how much they were negatively impacting your passion for ministry, and you will be well on your way to rekindling that same passion.
Which of these three do you need to implement first and right now? Pastor, you have a great work to do. Rekindle your ministry passion and re-join the Lord in reaching your community for Him.