Page 15 - BMIN191 Beginnning Internship

The Heart of Ministry 15

life and future. Abraham’s actions were his statement of honor to the Lord and
ultimately brought him remarkable affirmation from God.
Perhaps the most powerful demonstration of a heart that honors God comes
from the life of Isaiah. In Isaiah 6, the prophet finds himself in the midst of a
vision of God’s throne room. He is speechless before the majesty of God. In this
overwhelming setting, Isaiah momentarily sees his true self and is horrified at his
own weakness. He does not belong there, in this holy presence; God’s supreme
holiness has unveiled his failures, and the prophet collapses in self-loathing. But
in that moment Isaiah receives a gift, for God touches something and makes it
right within him—something that sets his heart and mind in harmony with the
desire of God for His people.
The final scene is a renewed Isaiah eavesdropping on a heavenly
conversation: “Whom shall I send?” (Isaiah 6:8). The haunting query explodes
in the prophet’s ears. Strengthened only by grace, he responds willingly,
recognizing a meaning for his life that will exceed all others. In a mere eight
verses, a life is transformed and will never change from its new course.
Like Isaiah, ministers must have a clear sense of the superiority of the One
they are serving. Jesus demonstrated this same heart as He willingly pursued the
plan of His Father and submitted to Calvary.
The Necessity
Humans’ greatest temptation is pride. In fact, no other condition of the heart
separates people from the Creator more than pride. As you can imagine, this
could be the ultimate snare for the minister. In the shower of affirmations that
a minister can receive because of his or her efforts in the ministry or simply by
virtue of being the spiritual mentor for the lives the parishioners, the minister
can come to see him- or herself through some pretty unhealthy lens. Paul and his
companions watched in horror as those they had ministered to began to worship
them. Such results can come on the heels of any number of things that a minister
may do by the power of God’s Spirit.
3 How does pride result from Indeed, such circumstances provide a lure to the human heart. But the
a heart that fails to honor God? honoring heart guards itself against these moments. The minister who becomes
the victim of self-pride ultimately seeks to be served and adored. God has
established His unwillingness to share His glory; therefore, we can anticipate His
correcting response to our pride. Thus, an honoring heart is essential to the work
of ministry. If we fail to see ourselves as servants, we will be left to pursue our
own goals. The honoring heart keeps God’s purposes in focus and in doing so,
finds protection from self-focused agendas or self-serving motivations that can
quickly derail the effectiveness of the ministry.
The Development
A minister who understands the seriousness of an honoring heart will surely
desire to possess and operate out of this attitude. Acquiring the right heart for
ministry is an ongoing work in each minister’s discipleship journey. Still this
attitude of heart is learned; it is a definite choice for the minister. We must work to
nurture and protect a heart that honors God. Circumstances will test our hearts and
try to pull us away from this important goal. But we must accept the importance of
this journey and keep its challenge prominent throughout a ministry career.
Once we have made an honoring heart our target and have acknowledged
that it is obtained as part of a journey, it is time to practice those things that will
cultivate such a heart. First among them are regular expressions of worship. The