I’ve been sharing some posts recently on how we discern a calling for Gospel ministry. Partly I’m hoping that these will be generally useful but I also have a specific concern in mind. Regular readers of Faithroots will know that my passion is to see gospel workers planting and leading churches here in the urban West Midlands. So, if you are considering that possibility then here is a list of questions that I would encourage you to be discussing/working through with your family and your current church leaders.
- Can you share your testimony in 3 minutes?
- Can you sum up the Gospel in 1 paragraph?
- What would you say is the job/role of a pastor or elder?
- Why do you believe that you are called specifically to Gospel ministry?
- Would you say that your calling is primarily to a geographical area, a particular demographic or a specific type of ministry?
- What would you and others say are the particular gifts that you have?
- What are you currently involved in within your local church ministry wise? What do you enjoy about this? What do you find challenging?
- Have other people encouraged you to consider pastoral ministry?
- How does your family feel about the possibility of you going into full time Christian work?
- What would your employer, neighbours and non-Christians say if you were to raise this possibility with them?
- How would you describe your current state of health, physically, emotionally etc? Do you have any prior health issues that might cause concern? (Note that a pre-existing health condition does not rule out ministry but is something to be aware of and may have an impact on particular aspects of the work).
- Who would you say have been the primary influences on your faith? Why? What have you learnt from them?
- What are the three main lessons that God has taught you in the past year?
- Read through the qualifications for leaders in 1 Timothy 3. How do you measure up against each?
- In what ways would you say that the fruit of the Spirit are evidenced in your life?
- Have you experienced suffering persecution or testing within the last 10 years? How did that affect your walk with God?
- Describe your relationship to God.
- How would others describe your personality?
- Where would others identify weaknesses and risks in your personality/character?
- Have you ever had to be rebuked/disciplined for public/persistent sin?
- What would you say are the main temptations you have to battle with.
- Do you have any existing and on-going responsibilities that perhaps should be prioritised first?
- Has anyone said that you should not pursue full time ministry? What were their reasons?
- What forms of formal and informal training have you already under taken?
- Why should you continue in your current role/calling in life?
These are designed not as yes or no questions or as an assessment but rather to get you thinking about a whole range of issues that will affect a potential calling. I would encourage you to sit down with a piece of paper and start to jot down answers. Then take a bit of time to talk with your family about the questions. At the same time book in some time to talk to your church elders.
As I’ve mentioned so many times on Faithroot.com one of my concerns is to find potential church planters and pastors for revitalisations here in the urban West Midlands. I would also be very happy to talk with people who are consider such a calling either in person or via a Zoom call. Just get in touch via the contact form on this site.
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