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Ministry Can Be Messy…

Orginally published on Monday, December 08, 2008 at 9:12 AM
by Todd Rhoades


Keith Manuel has a great article over at Baptist Press today about how worthwhile ministry is many times messy. Keith writes: "Ministry can be messy. To reach alcoholics you have to be willing to smell some alcohol. When you deal with families in crisis, you are required to listen to stories of heartbreak. If you go into a prison, you open yourself to a person who is hurting and families who are broken.

Some situations will make you mad; other situations will break your heart. You will be vulnerable to your emotions. You may have to give up some personal time. You likely will need to pray more.

Read more here...

What “messy” ministry are you currently involved with that is the most worthwhile?


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  There are 9 Comments:

  • Posted by Pastor Scott

    I was called to pastor a small dying church in rural South Carolina. After being there a few months a friend that I had worked with in the past joined me there. I was delighted for me to come be a part of our church. There was literally no one at this church that capable of teaching the Bible; And very few people willing to try. I was thrilled to have such a godly fellow and gifted bible teach in our midst.

    About a year and half later I was devastated when I met with him in my office and he and his wife informed me he was in big trouble with the U.S. Department of Justice: Porn, underage girls at that.

    Long story short, after much biblical counseling (some with Dr. Schaumburg at focus on the family) my friend is headed to federal prision for 7 years to teach the bible to federal inmates.

    My brother is being restored to the faith. His marriage has been saved. Other Federal inmates can now be discipled by a “peer”.

    I ended up leaving my pastorate at this church. I was kicked around a little on a local newspapers website as a result of going to federal court with my friend.

    Was it worth it, a thousand times yes! It was very messy, and personally a little hurtful and maybe even embarrassing. But isn’t that what God called us to do? Meet peoples needs?

    nHim,

    Scott

  • Posted by Peter Hamm

    In general, it’s the life issues that developing new believers and pre-believers have. They are always messy. We have addiction, co-habitation, poverty, bad choices, kid’s bad choices, disability…

    Loving people at whatever their station is just plain messy.

  • Posted by Camey

    Listening to other’s pain and of course there’s the whole prayer ministry thing too.

    Part of what is making ministry for us messy these days is being so involved with our current church body and yet being prepared to leave. There’s that whole - we love the body we serve with, but are looking forward to the new body as well. Of course, it is totally worth it. I’ve been asked if my husband becoming “the pastor” of a church is the goal… No.. it is part of the bigger plan. Not the end all be all…

  • Posted by

    I’ve got a situation that qualifies as, “messy,” where I would appreciate the wisdom and help of anyone who has encountered these situations before.

    I spend time regularly ministering to teenagers at a local gathering place.  I go there to preach, offer food and drink, and to listen to and get to know these kids.  Some of them come from normal homes, others have gone through horrible lives.

    I was contacted by the sister of one of these young men the other day, asking for my help.  The young man, 16, has a drug addiction, fights, and has a criminal background.  Things sound like they are getting dire at home, and they are looking for some help somewhere.  He spoke of me to his sister, believing that I could offer help, and that is why she reached out to me.

    I’m going through my pastors to try to find any resources that are already available.  I’ve also offered to meet with the family to help out.  Keep in mind that I’m not a counselor or preacher by vocation, but have gone through hours of training and have a heart for these kids.

    Any recommendations?

    --
    CS

  • Posted by

    Most of our ministry is in the messy category.  The police know us well now smile And we’ve sat in court with several who went to find out what their sentence would be.

    We are comforting a family whose son has gotten two girls pregnant at once (they are due within a month of each other) and now he’s in trouble with the law.  Meanwhile, he and the rest of the family, have made professions of faith, as has one of the girlfriends.

    We have a women who was dealing drugs to high schoolers, got caught, truly repented of her behavior, and is now in treatment, therapy, and court mandated appointments, etc.  We’ve given them Christmas, and they both made professions of faith, as they deal with the consequences of their behavior.

    I could go on and on… the elderly alone woman, who has an alcohol addiction, and now is going blind.

    The 14 year old teen who was pregnant and her father forced her to have an abortion.

    Ministry should be ugly.  If it’s pretty, I don’t think we are touching the lives of the lost.

  • Posted by

    Hey, CS.  I would be glad to offer some help to you, but there are simply not enough details here for me to provide you with a thoughtful and comprehensive response.  If you would like to take this off-line i would be glad to email with you (908-249-3159) or to offer some phone consultation.  (I am a former pastor who is now working full-time in private practice as a licensed counselor.)

    Blessings,
    Glenn Murphy, LPC, BCPPC

  • Posted by

    My grandfather used to own a farm with a handful of pigs, a few cows, a couple of horses - and 7000 chickens. Every summer we worked with him on the farm… It stunk to high heaven and was messy. Every night we came back to the house messy and muddy.
    But we never complained about the fried chicken on Sunday, the bacon and eggs every morning or the smoked country ham biscuits.

    Later in life I had the great misfortune of being around sheep. These creatures behavior and smell made the 7000 chickens look like a rose garden. Sheep bite each other, they defecate on each other and are about as dumb as any animal you will ever see. But the wool is warm and the occasional leg is tasty.

    Is it any wonder why God calls us the “sheep” of His pasture?
    Wrangling sheep is messy, smelly, you might be bitten a time or two and you will on occasion get some “poop” on you… you can bank on it.
    But when one of them comes to Christ, when a brother who has fallen is restored, when a family is strengthened to overcome someone’s addiction… it is all worth while.
    One “sheep” coming into the fold makes all the mess seem petty.

    Just my two cents… hang in there - we’re in this together…

  • Posted by
  • Ministry is messy because people are messy.  All the more reason to be healthy in mind body & spirit.

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