There have been countless religious leaders that have popped up in the last 100 years that make big strides in affecting large populations. They come preaching something that attracts people to it.
Sometimes it’s that if they follow it they will be wealthy, for others it’s that it will bring inner peace, many promise a reward at the end.
I often wonder though about the men and women at the top of these movements. What drives them? Are they driven to lead because it’s what they believe? Or are they simply following something they’re good at? Maybe they like the glory that comes from listening to what they say.
It would be nice to think that all of them stem from the first one. That they all truly believe what they believe and that’s why they preach it, but it’s unfortunately not always the case. Even those who preach the truth I believe can do it for the wrong reasons. Heck, if I’m honest, I often don’t preach what I believe to be true because of love for others, but instead a desire to be right.
These situations have to make me wonder, when I tell others about what I believe, am I telling them because God has given me a commission to share the truth with the world, or is it because I, Joey, am going to have some big impact on the world — my impact?
At the end of the day, I have to constantly deny myself and say “not my ministry, but God’s.” There’s a part of this that is letting go and feeling like you’ve lost power. But there is another part that allows you to sleep much better at night knowing that you are not the one ultimately responsible. God is. That is not to say that you have no part to play. We are God’s workmanship. Created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
We are an integral part of God’s plan of redemption, but the key is that it’s GOD’S plan, not ours.
I must each day, reject my own sense of power (which is none), and ask God to use me how He can. When we do this, the limits of how God can use us are endless.
Well said.
1 Corinthians 3:6