Launch Your Ministry Chapter 15 of 27
<-Chapter 14 Chapter 16-> Return to FulltextAbilities of the Body
Condensed Version (Completed)
In the previous section we dealt with the subject of Fulfilling Your Ministry Calling. We saw that over time you can begin to identify exactly what God has called you to.
Now we come to this second part which ties in with that series and it is called Using Your Ministry Gifts.
When it comes to ministry, one of the most important and popular subjects is for people to somehow identify and discover exactly what kind of gifts and abilities they have.
As we explained previously, when most people start out in ministry, they start at the lower levels. They start out in a more natural realm and then move up into a more supernatural realm.
I want to take you back to the starting point and help you to identify and discover exactly what ministry gifts you have and what you need. Then we will look at how to go about obtaining more.
How do you find your ministry gifts? If you were to ask someone to tell you what gifts they have, what is the first thing they look at?
They look inside of themselves to see what capabilities they have. What has been given to them that other people do not have.
What do they have that is unique, and that they are good at, which could be considered gifts? What can be used to do the work of the ministry?
You will see that the ministry gifts will fall under two main groups.
A. Natural Gifts
These are gifts that were developed naturally, or that you may have had from birth. They are gifts that are resident in you because of the kind of person that you are.
B. Supernatural Gifts
These are a totally different category. They are not resident in you, but you have to receive them supernaturally from another source.
We will consider both of these in detail in this section.
Natural Gifts
Where in yourself do you look to find the gifts that you have received naturally? When you look at the natural person, you must consider the fact that according to Scripture we are made up of three parts.
1. We have a body
2. We have a soul
3. We have a spirit
You can have gifts in all three of these parts of your being. You have resident abilities that you were either born with or that developed through life.
So the best place to start in considering your gifts or abilities that you could use to do the work of the ministry, is to look at your body, soul and spirit.
The Body
What kind of natural abilities do you have in your body that will equip you for ministry? There are several different things you need to take into account.
One of the first is what is known as 'body types'. What kind of body do you have? You may wonder if that is important for ministry, but it depends on what kind of ministry you plan to do.
Some people have bodies that are more physically fit and better equipped to do any kind of work that involves physical or manual work.
So for example if God has called you to be a missionary, to travel to foreign lands and to handle the physical stresses involved, you may need a specific physical makeup.
If you are a weak or sickly person it would not be advisable for you to even consider such a ministry. So your physical condition can be a very important part of deciding your ministry.
Body Types
People tend to have a greater emphasis on what we call either 'brawn' or 'brain'.
In worldly terms these are often referred to as 'butch' or 'nerd'. And they have categorized different body types in the bodybuilding world, such as ectomorphs, mesomorphs and endomorphs.
These describe people who are skinny, muscular or flabby but they are not always based purely on the physical. Sometimes they include qualities from the soul that are mixed in.
What then is the best body type for ministry?
It is probably more important to identify the best ministry for your body type. Since you cannot change your body type easily, it is better to make the best of what you have.
Brain
Some people have a better brain capacity. Usually a 'brainy' person is someone who has greater intellectual abilities. They have a brain that is very capable of absorbing and using knowledge in a more intelligent way.
Does God need that? Not necessarily. But I will share more about this shortly.
Charles Spurgeon, a famous preacher known as The Prince of Preachers, is credited to have said the following.
"If I can be a ram's horn for the Lord, then that is wonderful. But if I can be a silver trumpet, that is even better."
God can use any kind of person. But if we can develop characteristics that are made available to the Lord to use, then we can accomplish far more for Him.
History shows that many have accomplished great things for the Lord in spite of their physical characteristics. But often those with different physical characteristics accomplished different things for the Kingdom of God.
You may have to honestly take a good look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself,
"Am I physically equipped to do the wonderful ministry that I so desire to do?"
In some cases the ministry has literally killed people. They went into a ministry that put them into physical stress that their bodies were not able to handle.
So be honest with yourself and take a good look at your body before you rush off into a ministry involvement.
Vocal Capabilities
What kind of voice do you have? Do you have a tiny, squeaky little voice, that has little volume and hardly anyone can hear you? Would you like to listen to someone speaking like that for hours?
What if you desire to move into a ministry that requires you to speak to people verbally? What if you need to stand up before large groups of people to speak the Word of God?
Then you should have the kind of vocal power that will allow you to speak loudly, clearly and distinctly. If you are gifted with a bad voice it could stand in the way of your ministry ability.
Stamina and Strength
The general stamina and strength in your body are important.
What if you are called to be like Paul, who traveled on all the missionary journeys and went from place to place? It will require a certain amount of physical energy and stamina to do this.
You would need this to be able to go through beatings, shipwrecks, fasting, and all the things that Paul tells us he went through. He was a very unique kind of person who could do many things because of his physical capabilities.
If you lack those physical capabilities, it means that you cannot do the kind of ministry work that requires such abilities.
What You Can Do
Is there something you can do about your physical condition? There certainly is. You can change the look of your body through diet and exercise. You can make your body healthy and strong and capable. In fact you should be walking in Divine Health.
You can also develop your mental capabilities through study and with the Lord's help. You could even do vocal training and learn to train your voice so that it communicates well.
Unfortunately there are some body characteristics that you are born with and they cannot be changed. You will have to just accept that fact.
Realize though that the Lord has a specific function or ministry or calling for you, and He knew what kind of body you would have when He decided on that calling.
God knew about it and already took it into account. He will give you a ministry that is totally suited to what your body is able to handle.
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