Page 2 of 2I've found that when I have the "ministry blah," it's often because I'm not staying well-connected with God. Spiritual disciplines, like prayer and Bible reading, fall by the wayside, and slowly, often without recognizing the symptoms for what they are, I'm bombarded with feelings of discouragement, incompetence, and carelessness.
Remedies differ for different Christians, but fasting is a key component that leads me to healing. For me, it's usually one meal a week. Instead of eating that meal, I drive to a nearby park, take a walk, and talk to God about my attitude. Typically, I leave with a realization that it wasn't my passion toward ministry that was wavering, but my disconnect and disregard for God during that period of time.
Set a Goal
Sometimes God shuts down a ministry or moves us to a different area of service. I've experienced times when I felt God wanted to give me a break and build me up for the season ahead.
For this reason, it's not always simple to tell if you're sick with the "blah" or if you just need to change your ministry diet. Besides connecting with God regularly, I often set a goal for myself in regard to the ministry.
I had a rough year with my ministry to at-risk students. At one point, we found that some of our resources were stolen. Kids were inconsistent in their attendance. Volunteers were not stepping up in line with my expectations and began to skip weeks with greater frequency. I began to feel certain that for us to have an effective ministry, we needed a minimum of 15 volunteers. That number started entering my mind quite often when I thought about the program.
I can't say for sure that this is a God-ordained number or that it represents the life or death of the ministry, but it's become my goal for the ministry going forward. "Lord, this ministry reaches more families when we have more volunteers. I feel like this was a ministry you laid on my heart to launch. I sense that with 15 volunteers we can start making a real impact, and that's a very realistic number. Please bring 15 volunteers to us before we begin again in the fall." That is my prayer, and that is my goal.
Stay Faithful
"Ministry blah" is part of spiritual life. You're not a worse Christian because you have it. You're not wasting your time in your ministry. You're not useless. Actually, the fact that you are in ministry says something important about you. You've stepped out of the boat. You've stepped into a life of service, and that pleases God.
At times when I want to quit, I realize that I have to fight it off. Satan doesn't want us serving God, so he'll do everything that he can to discourage us.
Nehemiah had plenty of opposition when he answered the call to lead the rebuilding of Jerusalem's wall. Sanballat and others ridiculed and threatened the Jews and their service. Nehemiah 4:11 records that they taunted, "Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to their work." But the servants didn't lose faith. They didn't give up. They persevered in the task that God had called them to.
Let's fight the "blah" and persevere in the task that God has called us to.
Cory Whitehead works in new product development at Christianity Today International.
