Posted May 5th, 2014 at 6:05 amNo Comments Yet
Remember the old poem that came out a few years ago; “Everything I needed to know in life, I learned in kindergarten.”
Well, I believe one of the main points of that poem is absolutely correct.
SHARING
So many times we see the world from only our point of view, forgetting that there are others around us who feel just like we do. We get caught up in our own little worlds forgetting to be gracious and to prefer our brethren over ourselves.
Human nature is basically selfish and thinks only of itself. But as Christians we need to be aware of our brothers and sisters in The Lord, to understand them and be patient with them when then irritate us and to gently tell them our concerns later in privacy, when the feelings and tempers have calmed down.
It is no different in ministry. When you are on a team with lots of differing individuals, the scripture tells us all to Share and take turns.
“1 Corinthians 14
26 How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. 27 If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret. 28 But if there is no interpreter, let him keep silent in church, and let him speak to himself and to God. 29 Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge. 30 But if anything is revealed to another who sits by, let the first keep silent. 31 For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged. 32 And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. 33 For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints….
36 Or did the word of God come originally from you? Or was it you only that it reached?37 If anyone thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things which I write to you are the commandments of the Lord. 38 But if anyone is ignorant, let him be ignorant.
39 Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues. 40 Let all things be done decently and in order.”
As a matter of fact, Paul preaches to a Spirit-filled Corinthian church exactly how they should come together and how they should prefer or give way to one another, in love, and not in pride or thinking that they had the ONLY word from God to share.
(in verse 31, he speaks;)
“31 For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged. 32 And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets.”
In kindergarten we all learned to line up and to take turns when we were to receive anything from the teacher, or we took turns in speaking for “show and tell”. Flowing together as one “Body of Christ” really is just that simple.
If any one among you thinks they are better than the other………that is just pride….. Yes, some are leaders and followers and some are elders in the Body and have learned wisdom from being around longer than you have, but we must all still take turns.
Tell me, who leads when a group of pastors gathers in the room together?
If, as we all say we do, believe in the “Priesthood of all believers”, we should be seeking Holy Spirit to lead us in agreement. If we do not all agree, then we should go to our brother/sister and discuss it, as Jesus told us to, privately, until we have some sort of consensus or agreement.
“1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;”
“Matthew 5:23-26
23 Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.25 Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. 26 Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny.”
If we are to work together as the people of God we need to communicate to understand each other and how we all flow together in the river of God. Anything else, is just pride.
Can you hear the voice in your head say to you; “I’m so powerful in God, I have to move when the Spirit tells me to, right then.”
OR
“They’ll be sorry after I go and take all my gifts with me, cause they wouldn’t let me speak when I needed too.”
OR
“Who do they think they are, trying to share their gifts, when I obviously have the only word of The Lord to share.”
OR
Are you always interrupting what God is doing with the others in the room, to share what you have to share, about how wonderful you are and how wonderful God used you?
My friend – I hate to be the one to tell you – But, you do not know how to share!
ITS NOT ALL ABOUT YOU.
Years ago, I was in ministry with 3 wonderfully anointed people. They moved in the gifts of the spirit effortlessly and were most of the time correct. Yet, there was something that didn’t quite fit. They seemed to be always getting offended at each other or someone else around them while they were trying to minister. It was becoming a real problem and no one was being particularly giving in the ministry times. And as you would expect, the boldest personality rose to the top, most of the time and squelched anyone else who wanted to share or had a true gift to be exercised in the meetings.
Oh, people raved about how this “bold” person moved in the Spirit, and this person was growing and was raised up faster than most. Before long he was speaking to large churches and ministering WAY beyond his experience level.
I was so disturbed by this and I was finding it hard to ever get a word in the meetings for the crowd seemed to be always following this one person, and of course, we ‘loving movie stars’, helped make him one as fast as we could. People just love to put men up on pedestals and to worship them.
(It’s our fallen nature)
I decided to go home and seriously seek The Lord about all of these disturbing feelings that I was having. First I thought maybe I was just proud and perhaps jealous of this person’s popularity, a real possibility of the flesh in ministry. I repented and fell on my face before The Lord, seeking His forgiveness and humbling my self to Holy Spirit. God was God and He could use whomever He chose, who was I to question Him.
Then The Lord started speaking to me and well, it surprised me, with what He said. He didn’t rebuke me or even seem to be upset with me. He simply told me it was all “sibling rivalry”.
Sibling Rivalry:
(Definition) – intense competition among siblings for recognition and the attention of their parents. Sibling rivalry normally begins when a baby is introduced to a family and the older sibling fears the baby will replace him or her. . . As the children grow, sibling rivalry can lead to extremely competitive or aggressive behavior, which may become generalized to other life experiences(e.g., career). Sibling rivalry is by no means universal or inevitable, but seems to depend in part upon how parents balance the sometimes competing needs of offspring.
You see the 3 friends that were on this ministry team with me were all raised as only children. They had never had to share. When you are raised as a sibling you are forced to learn to “share”.
It simply came down to Sharing.
No one wants to lord it over another – we do it all so simply and easily. Just like children fighting for a place at the table or in the lunch line at school. Being selfish comes so easily we often mistake it for promotion, when it is simply seeking our own way above the others in our midst.
Eventually, I hope, God will teach us humility and sharing, but it often comes at a mean price, when we have to eat “crow”. Sometimes we get ourselves out of fellowship with others and we are so far out there that we can not easily come back, for we fear our pride can not handle the humbling. Often we find the group went on completely without missing us and we get our feelings hurt and go years before we learn the lessons we SHOULD have learned as children – simply Sharing.
Let us learn now to prefer one another in love and to share in ministry all the great gifts God has bestowed upon us all, as one body of Christ, one person at a time.
1 Cor. 5:1-2
1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.”
“Phil 2:1-4
1 Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, 2 fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3 Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. 4 Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”
Be Blessed and walk in love.
Cyndi
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