Peace of mind
The other definition for this is what is described as a “clear conscience”. There is nothing as satisfying to the soul as a life that is lived to please the Master – to do what is right when necessary; regardless of who claps hands or not, in spite of who agrees or disagrees. My greatest desire is to come to the end of my life with zero regrets, but to say with Paul, “I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God” (Act 20:26-27). I don’t think the same can be said about a minister who lives to be the trending cool guy whose goal is to be as famous as he can be at the expense of truth. I believe such individuals are slaves of their own consciences. “There is no peace for the wicked,” says the Bible.
A chance to suffer for the Lord
I listen to many stories from around the world of believers who endure intense suffering because of their Christian Faith. At all that I ask, what would it feel like for me if ever I found myself in that situation? However, I also realize that I am also facing my own share of maltreatment, albeit different in nature. That is, being a devoted Christian itself is an application for being opposed, no matter where you are. Naturally, nobody likes being persecuted, in fact, we would all prefer to be loved to the point of having statues built in our honor. Yet, as per our Lord’s command, “You will be hated by all men for my Name’s sake.” Therefore, we, who have chosen this road of faithfulness know what it means to be in the minority; to be rejected, isolated and blamed for all sorts of things. However, I can’t help but revel in this great privilege of suffering for my Saviour! As a matter of fact, this is proof that our faith is genuine and a million times worth living and dying for. If there was a verse that closely resonates with my ministry, it would be this one.
…We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything. We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians; our heart is wide open - 2 Corinthians 6:8-11
The strengthening effect
The first verses from the book of James reminds us that we should always count it joy when we face various trials because these actually work the best in us by means of growth and maturity. Therefore, it is a good thing that your ministry has these kinds of hardships, otherwise, if it was all easy, who knows what would have happened to your heart and eventually to the direction of your faith. Often times we think of success as a blessing, perhaps it might be, but not always. History has proven that the more a Christian group or church grows in number, the more problems it has, the further it moves away from truth. Hence I think we ought to thank God when we face these kinds of rejection and opposition in our walk with the Lord. That is the thing that will strengthen our convictions and guard our paths against deviation from the truth.
Dependence upon God for success
One of the most important things I have learned as a Christian minister is that salvation is of the Lord. “No one can come to me unless the Father draws him”, says Jesus. Hence I don’t have to have sleepless nights over the fact that people seem to ignore this Jesus I am trying to present to them. I don’t have to move a finger to manipulate, beg, and almost force souls to listen to me. It’s not dependent upon me. Jesus knows His sheep, they hear His voice and they follow Him; with or without my ministry. My job is to simply preach the truth, live that truth, write about truth, pray for that truth and entrust the rest to the Judge of the whole earth who will always do what is right. Unlike some ministers – God have mercy – who are so bent on winning the crowd that they replace the Gospel with other man-centered strategies such as entertainment, charisma, emotional stories, jokes and even worldly riches.
Another helpful thing that I have learned in this evangelistic journey is that God uses our ministries to save men, yes, but He also uses the same to harden hard hearts all the more. Just as Pharaoh hardened His heart against Moses, and God saw to it that it was hardened all the more, sealing his condemnation.
Therefore, I encourage my faithful comrades, there will be pressure from the culture around us to put aside that “old fashion Bible” in favour of the so-called “modern ideas”, yet if we truly believe that the good Lord uses that ancient Book to advance His cause, we will stick with it and preach it without apology. Let us be faithful in these small matters, and quietly leave the results to Him.
The future reward
As a Gospel minister, if you were to kidnap and intensely torture me, the one thing that I would eventually confess is jealousy. I mean jealousy towards worldly celebrities and singers. They are the ones who seem to receive due honor and reward for their hard work. I mean, no matter how hard we believers work, we still never hear of anything called the Best Christian of the Year Award, Evangelism Church of the Month Award, or Faithful Pastor Achievement Award. None of that! What then is our hope and reward? “If we have hope for this life only,” says the Apostle, “…then we are of all people, the most pitiful.” It means it is a pitiful thing if our hope is a reward in this world. After all, His kingdom is not of this world, is it? He says to us, “When you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.” This is our hope beloved. A reward on the other side. This is the reason why we must continue to labour and strive (1 Tim 4:10). Therefore, we will not be weary of doing good, but we will be faithful to do that which we have been called to do.
Summary
I purposefully crafted this script to encourage my fellow faithful laborers in this harvest of heaven. Yes, no one will ever know your name, yet the solid foundation is that the Lord knows those who are His (2 Tim 2:19). Take heart in that. Definitely, there will be many despairs along the way, yet there is nothing as beautiful as doing what you believe the Lord has called you to do. To have that clear conscience of serving your Master out of a pure heart, while also knowing that regardless of naysayers and mockers, there will be some who will believe; there will be some who will be saved, while others will be edified in their Christian walk because of our faithful ministries. Onwards we advance then, salute.
Sinothi Ncube
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