April 9, 2011

The Pulpit: A Young Minister’s Dream

Home / April 2011 / The Pulpit: A Young Minister’s Dream

For many young men and women accepting the Lord’s calling to preach, a wonderful purpose in God awaits. Their hearts and minds are filled with anticipating of preaching and teaching across a pulpit to share God’s truths to His people. And week after week and year after year, many eagerly wait for their chance to preach. Some will have opportunities at Sunday evening service, Saturday service, or maybe Sunday school, but nothing would compare to Sunday morning service. However, there is more to being a minister of the Lord than speaking on Sunday.

Long before you preach a sermon across the Lord’s pulpit, you speak and interact with people. The life of a minister (on any scale) is:

Interacting with people and sharing God’s Word, love, and grace.
Serving and helping those with physical, material, emotional, and spiritual needs.
Serving beyond the four walls of the church – not for the church, pastor, or even yourself, but because of love.
Living with integrity and holiness before the Lord and His people.

We preach long before we enter a pulpit. It is the message we speak before we enter the pulpit that speaks volumes in the lives and hearts of others. Allow your life to speak God’s truth. A platform to speak on Sunday may never come for you, and if this is the Lord’s will, allow your life to be used in other ways. The pulpit is not the only place God’s Word is shared.

There are some that are fearful to preach across a pulpit. Just as Moses was not an eloquent speaker (Exodus 4:10-14), the Lord used him to deliver His people…and if you read the story further, you’ll find that his brother Aaron spoke in the beginning, and soon, Moses spoke exclusively. Trust in the Lord and allow the gift and purpose He has placed in you to grow. He will never leave you lonely or place you in a situation that He knows you are not already prepared to handle (even if you don’t know it).

Photo courtesy of Stock.XCHNG.com/madmaven