Thank you for joining us this morning as Pastor Dale continued our series about the “First Things” of the Christian Life, things we do together as a church. Today Pastor Dale shared how we take our connection to God, our experience of God, incarnationally into our world, with people, and to people. This is our ministry.

The truth is, every one of us who follows Jesus is in ministry. We are to carry forth Christ’s mission in the world. Paul's illustration of how this works is seen in Romans 12, "For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others." 

We, the church, are the body of Christ. But what does this mean? Pastor Dale laid out three practical ways to minister and serve: 

Ministry through Listening. It starts with listening, slowing down, and listening to Jesus, and continues with joining him. Beautiful questions to ask:

“Jesus, what ministry are you doing in my child … how can I join?”

“Jesus, what are you doing in the life of my spouse … how can I join?”

“Jesus, what are you doing in the life of a friend… how can I join?”

“Jesus, what are you doing in the lives of those around me… how can I join?

We seek our Savior for what He is doing and how we can join Him. It is from alignment and engagement with Him that we can partner with Him and take the love He places inside of us outwards to others.

Ministry through Serving. God has gifted each one of us with gifts that are meant to be used as a body of believers, to serve the body, and to serve the community. As a servant, we can show up differently looking at each day, and every interaction with a posture that seeks, "How can I serve in this moment?" and "What does this person need?". We can bring this to all areas of our lives, whether in our work, community, or relationships. We can minister by approaching the interaction as a servant. 

Ministry through Character. Scripture says it best, "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality." - Romans 12:9-12

Ministry is not about us, but those around us. At the core of it, we are called and asked to help people get their awe of God back. Our awe of God should inform everything we do and why we do it. It is the most beautiful thing we can give our lives to.