Check Out The Free Inspirational Articles Below
10 Steps To A Balanced Ministry
By: James Smith

Ministry is an occupation where balance is often hard to find. While others punch a clock and work only one job, the minister is often times required to wear multiple hats and even work a secular job as well. Here are 10 points to consider to discover balance for your life and ministry.
Stay focused
Your dedication to what God has called you to do will require stringent concentration. There are going to be many opportunities for you to become distracted. Stay Focused. Remain prayerful and know that God has called you to a work because of your uniqueness and giftedness.
Create written goals
Daily, weekly, monthly and annual goals are accomplished best when they are written down. Writing down your goals will give you a constant daily reminder of what you are trying to achieve. Something as simple as a daily list of things to do, is also a list of written goals.
Make plans – Build a bridge
How do you get from where you are to where you want to be? Plan for it to happen. Wishing and hoping will not accomplish your life’s goals. You have to make it happen. You can do this by building a bridge from where you are to where you want to go. This is called a plan. Once you have a plan, you start at the beginning and work your way through it until you reach your goal. Stop wishing and make a plan. Then work that plan.
Ask for help
You are not the only genius in your church. God has placed some people around you, who if you will begin to enable them, will make your job a lot easier. If you try to do it all yourself, your church will never grow. Spend your time working your plan through other people. Have you ever heard the expression “Other People’s Money” when it comes to investing money? Well, “Other People’s Time and Talents needs to be the expression we adopt in the church. Enable, entrust and employ the people in your church to help you accomplish your goals.
Mentor others
Chances are, you are going to have to mentor some of the people in your church. In order to do that, you are going to have to create opportunities for that mentoring to happen. Host dinners, teach classes, spend time one on one. Do what you have to do to create opportunities to mentor the people around you. The more you do, the more equipped they will become to help you realize your ministries goals & objectives.
Work yourself out of a job
Seriously! Your job is not to do all the work. Your job is to find people to do the work so you can go in the next direction God wants to lead you. Working yourself out of a job is going to take vision, dedication and some great people management skills. It’s a job all by itself. Stop taking out the trash and spend your time mentoring others to do the work of ministry.
Rest as often as you can
Even Jesus did this. There were times that even He stepped away from the crowds to pray. It’s ok to have your own escape now and then. You need this. If you don’t you will burn out. There is nothing uglier than a preacher with burn out. It usually does not end well for him, his family or the church he ministers to. Take time for yourself. Go to bed and get proper sleep. Even when you are swamped with meetings and activities, steal away every now and then for a few moments to yourself.
Put your family first
Winning the world and losing your family is not God’s will for your ministry. You may need to slow down your ministry to keep up with your family. God’s will is not for your family to be lost as the result of you having a successful ministry. Spend quality time with your spouse and children. They are the first people God has given you to minister to.
No guilt
Don’t feel guilty for the times you have to pull away from your ministry to be with family or work your job. Guilt will rob you of the joy of being with the family that God has blessed you with. It’s important to realize that God understands your humanity as well as your earthly obligations.
You may not get it all done
It is doubtful that any Man of God who is capable of a great vision will ever see that vision completely fulfilled. We are all scaffold. Someone else will build upon the ministries that we spend our lives developing. Trust God that He will complete the work he has used you to start. Stand back and admire what you have accomplished for the Kingdom, whether it’s completed or not…
Other articles you might like

Essential Qualities Of Leadership
God gives leaders gifts and talents that fit the mission to which they were called. What raises men above their fellows is the degree to which they developed those gifts through devotion and discipline.
Discipline - Without this essential quality, all other gifts remain as dwarfs; they cannot grow. Before we can conquer the world, we must first conquer self.
Vision - Those who have most powerfully and permanently influenced their generation have been "seers" - people who ha e seen more and father than others - persons of faith, for faith is vision.
Wisdom - If knowledge is the accumulation of facts, and intelligence the development of reason, wisdom is heavenly discernment. It is insight into the heart of things. Wisdom involves knowing God and the subtleties of the human heart. More than knowledge, it is the right application of knowledge in moral and spiritual matters, in handling dilemmas, in negotiating complex relationships....
[ read more...]
Essential Qualities Of Leadership
God gives leaders gifts and talents that fit the mission to which they were called. What raises men above their fellows is the degree to which they developed those gifts through devotion and discipline.
Discipline - Without this essential quality, all other gifts remain as dwarfs; they cannot grow. Before we can conquer the world, we must first conquer self.
Vision - Those who have most powerfully and permanently influenced their generation have been "seers" - people who ha e seen more and father than others - persons of faith, for faith is vision.
Wisdom - If knowledge is the accumulation of facts, and intelligence the development of reason, wisdom is heavenly discernment. It is insight into the heart of things. Wisdom involves knowing God and the subtleties of the human heart. More than knowledge, it is the right application of knowledge in moral and spiritual matters, in handling dilemmas, in negotiating complex relationships....
[ read more...]
Small Groups - The Individual
The individual in America is an emotional mess, with wounds and scars that alcohol, drugs and psychologists cannot heal. The Church is this person's only hope. However, in the traditional church setting, the individual is not always wholly ministered to. Many people have needs that cannot be completely met in the traditional church service. If a silent poll were taken in the average church, I believe we would be surprised to hear what some people would say concerning their personal, spiritual and emotional needs being met.
In the Small Group setting, the individual has an opportunity to not only be ministered to, but to minister to others. The Bible does tell us to "edify one another". A true family unit is developed when adult members share in the responsibility of preparing food for fellowship times, praying & worshiping together, caring for the children of the group, and hosting meetings in one another's homes.
[ read more...]

Small Groups - The Individual
The individual in America is an emotional mess, with wounds and scars that alcohol, drugs and psychologists cannot heal. The Church is this person's only hope. However, in the traditional church setting, the individual is not always wholly ministered to. Many people have needs that cannot be completely met in the traditional church service. If a silent poll were taken in the average church, I believe we would be surprised to hear what some people would say concerning their personal, spiritual and emotional needs being met.
In the Small Group setting, the individual has an opportunity to not only be ministered to, but to minister to others. The Bible does tell us to "edify one another". A true family unit is developed when adult members share in the responsibility of preparing food for fellowship times, praying & worshiping together, caring for the children of the group, and hosting meetings in one another's homes.
[ read more...]

The Three Longest Words in the Bible
When we submit to God's will for our lives, and put our hand in His hand, He does the leading. And sometimes before we get to the place that He has called us to go, he brings us to another place to teach us valuable lessons. To show us that whenever we do get to where He's leading us that He will be able to sustain us. He calls us to a certain city. He calls us to a certain country. He calls us to a certain ministry. We know that He has called us and we even know where He has called us to. We know that He has plans for us. But it's taking a little long to come to pass. We know that blessings are in store. He has promised us certain things. They just haven't come to pass yet. We know that we are supposed to wait on the promises of the Lord. But we get antsy. We start questioning God. Am I really called to this place? Am I still in the will of God? What am I doing here? How much longer? How long are you going to have me stay here Lord?.....
[ read more...]
The Three Longest Words in the Bible
When we submit to God's will for our lives, and put our hand in His hand, He does the leading. And sometimes before we get to the place that He has called us to go, he brings us to another place to teach us valuable lessons. To show us that whenever we do get to where He's leading us that He will be able to sustain us. He calls us to a certain city. He calls us to a certain country. He calls us to a certain ministry. We know that He has called us and we even know where He has called us to. We know that He has plans for us. But it's taking a little long to come to pass. We know that blessings are in store. He has promised us certain things. They just haven't come to pass yet. We know that we are supposed to wait on the promises of the Lord. But we get antsy. We start questioning God. Am I really called to this place? Am I still in the will of God? What am I doing here? How much longer? How long are you going to have me stay here Lord?.....
[ read more...]
The Cost of Compromise
In ministry, we have to be very careful about ignoring right information and truth just because it doesn't fit our plans or desires. We must seek out truth at all costs. Even if it invalidates our desires. Every leader and minister will be presented with situations where if a blind eye is turned, it might seem to benefit them or their ministry, but everything has a cost involved. One must always consider the cost of compromise.....
[ read more...]
The Cost of Compromise
In ministry, we have to be very careful about ignoring right information and truth just because it doesn't fit our plans or desires. We must seek out truth at all costs. Even if it invalidates our desires. Every leader and minister will be presented with situations where if a blind eye is turned, it might seem to benefit them or their ministry, but everything has a cost involved. One must always consider the cost of compromise.....
[ read more...]
How Many Will Follow?
Here is a question every leader of people asks himself/herself at one time or another.
When Jesus looked out over the masses who followed him, I wonder if He asked himself this same question. As He counted, in His mind, the healings and considered all who he helped, I wonder if he pondered how many would come after him....
[ read more...]

How Many Will Follow?
Here is a question every leader of people asks himself/herself at one time or another.
When Jesus looked out over the masses who followed him, I wonder if He asked himself this same question. As He counted, in His mind, the healings and considered all who he helped, I wonder if he pondered how many would come after him....
[ read more...]

A Leader's Courage - An Honest Look
Fear can and will keep many good leaders from becoming great leaders. Many mountain climbers have stood at the base camp of Mt. Everest, yet only a small percentage of them have had the courage it takes to actually climb to the top of that mountain.
Fear of the unknown. Fear of what people will say if we fail. Fear of the criticism along the way. Fear of being the only one saying “It can be done.” Fear of our vision being rejected by others.
Fear can kill our God given directive. It can suffocate our dream.
A position or office does not cause a person to become a leader. Though a person be chosen to Pastor a church, they are not truly a leader until they face their fears and actually lead that congregation into the places that God would want it to go. Being chosen to lead is easy. Actually leading is hard.
What defines a true visionary? Is it someone who has a lot of great ideas? Someone who sees the need for change, but never causes that change to take place? About 1 year ago I asked my wife to be very critical of me. I asked her to honestly tell me if I was someone who saw the things that needed to change and caused them to change or if I was someone who pointed out all the areas of needed change and did nothing. Her response though honest, was not what I wanted to hear.
I have determined, that if I am unable or unwilling to cause change in a given area, I will keep my mouth shut. Although I may see a need to change, I will say nothing, unless it is to spark a vision in another person who is capable of creating the needed change.
When I see another person or ministry who is successful, I go to them and find out how/why they are having success. I try to learn from them. Yet, I usually find that the reason they are having success is something I felt the Holy Spirit speaking to me about in the past. I get beat up pretty bad as I realize that God told me to do this same thing several years ago, only I lacked the courage to launch into it. You must admit with me that some of the more successful people around you are doing things that you yourself have considered, only they did it and you didn’t....
[ read more...]
A Leader's Courage - An Honest Look
Fear can and will keep many good leaders from becoming great leaders. Many mountain climbers have stood at the base camp of Mt. Everest, yet only a small percentage of them have had the courage it takes to actually climb to the top of that mountain.
Fear of the unknown. Fear of what people will say if we fail. Fear of the criticism along the way. Fear of being the only one saying “It can be done.” Fear of our vision being rejected by others.
Fear can kill our God given directive. It can suffocate our dream.
A position or office does not cause a person to become a leader. Though a person be chosen to Pastor a church, they are not truly a leader until they face their fears and actually lead that congregation into the places that God would want it to go. Being chosen to lead is easy. Actually leading is hard.
What defines a true visionary? Is it someone who has a lot of great ideas? Someone who sees the need for change, but never causes that change to take place? About 1 year ago I asked my wife to be very critical of me. I asked her to honestly tell me if I was someone who saw the things that needed to change and caused them to change or if I was someone who pointed out all the areas of needed change and did nothing. Her response though honest, was not what I wanted to hear.
I have determined, that if I am unable or unwilling to cause change in a given area, I will keep my mouth shut. Although I may see a need to change, I will say nothing, unless it is to spark a vision in another person who is capable of creating the needed change.
When I see another person or ministry who is successful, I go to them and find out how/why they are having success. I try to learn from them. Yet, I usually find that the reason they are having success is something I felt the Holy Spirit speaking to me about in the past. I get beat up pretty bad as I realize that God told me to do this same thing several years ago, only I lacked the courage to launch into it. You must admit with me that some of the more successful people around you are doing things that you yourself have considered, only they did it and you didn’t....
[ read more...]
Five Things Every Pastor Should Be Thinking About
The word 'pastor', or any other form of it, occurs only nine times in the Bible, and once in the New Testament.
We find this reference in...
Ephesians 4:11
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
The Greek word for pastor is, "poimen," which simply means a shepherd. The Hebrew word for pastor also means shepherd.
In modern day church culture, a pastor has also become much more than that. Unfortunately, the pastor has taken on every part of the five-fold ministry himself, thereby taking on offices not intended for him. This has led to much confusion and frustration for many who are pastors or feel led to become a pastor.
In modern vernacular, a pastor has become ' a one man, do it yourself, even though I am not really qualified to, kind of leader.' As Lee Stoneking stated, we have become a 'pastor driven organization.'
With that in mind, the very first thing that every pastor should consider is:
1. Is my office of pastor fulfilling God's role for a pastor?
A pastor is primarily a shepherd, somebody who cares for, protects and provides for every sheep in his flock.
· He is also the overseer of the flock.
· He is one who has experience.
· He must have a ready mind.
· He must manage the affairs of his flock.....
[ read more...]

Five Things Every Pastor Should Be Thinking About
The word 'pastor', or any other form of it, occurs only nine times in the Bible, and once in the New Testament.
We find this reference in...
Ephesians 4:11
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
The Greek word for pastor is, "poimen," which simply means a shepherd. The Hebrew word for pastor also means shepherd.
In modern day church culture, a pastor has also become much more than that. Unfortunately, the pastor has taken on every part of the five-fold ministry himself, thereby taking on offices not intended for him. This has led to much confusion and frustration for many who are pastors or feel led to become a pastor.
In modern vernacular, a pastor has become ' a one man, do it yourself, even though I am not really qualified to, kind of leader.' As Lee Stoneking stated, we have become a 'pastor driven organization.'
With that in mind, the very first thing that every pastor should consider is:
1. Is my office of pastor fulfilling God's role for a pastor?
A pastor is primarily a shepherd, somebody who cares for, protects and provides for every sheep in his flock.
· He is also the overseer of the flock.
· He is one who has experience.
· He must have a ready mind.
· He must manage the affairs of his flock.....
[ read more...]

Developing Positive People Skills
Relationships make us or break us. From the quality of our family time to our interactions at work, our relationships are largely responsible for our success or failure. To be successful in life, you must learn how to get along with people. Here are a few guidelines to help you develop “Positive People Skills”:
- Take the focus off yourself. People who focus on themselves when interacting with others rarely build positive lasting relationships. Become a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves. Allow them to ask questions. Pay attention to the answers.
- Care and know a lot about others. I often say that people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. All the skills and education in the world will never impress anyone as much as genuine heartfelt care for themselves. Knowing a lot about people is a real display of your care for them, and it creates a lasting bond....

Developing Positive People Skills
Relationships make us or break us. From the quality of our family time to our interactions at work, our relationships are largely responsible for our success or failure. To be successful in life, you must learn how to get along with people. Here are a few guidelines to help you develop “Positive People Skills”:
- Take the focus off yourself. People who focus on themselves when interacting with others rarely build positive lasting relationships. Become a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves. Allow them to ask questions. Pay attention to the answers.
- Care and know a lot about others. I often say that people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. All the skills and education in the world will never impress anyone as much as genuine heartfelt care for themselves. Knowing a lot about people is a real display of your care for them, and it creates a lasting bond....

How To C.R.A.F.T. A Message
C – collect & categorize
- Eccl. 12:9 (NLT) Because the Teacher was wise … He collected proverbs and classified them.
- Collect Bible verses, quotes, articles, books, sermon tapes, illustrations, etc. – even years in advance!
- Categorize them in a filing system – put something away each day
R – research & reflect
- Eccl. 12: 9 (NASB) The Preacher … pondered and searched out …
- Research is studying with my mind; reflection is listening with my heart (meditation).....

How To C.R.A.F.T. A Message
C – collect & categorize
- Eccl. 12:9 (NLT) Because the Teacher was wise … He collected proverbs and classified them.
- Collect Bible verses, quotes, articles, books, sermon tapes, illustrations, etc. – even years in advance!
- Categorize them in a filing system – put something away each day
R – research & reflect
- Eccl. 12: 9 (NASB) The Preacher … pondered and searched out …
- Research is studying with my mind; reflection is listening with my heart (meditation).....
Jump To Page:
what are you
researching?


NEWSLETTER ARTICLES

How soon do you begin training people in leadership positions? Well, let me ask you – how long do you wa...[read more]

Continuing this series on Guarding the Gates, which in concept really speaks of guarding the mind, we come to the t...[read more]

The expression of guarding the gates really has to do with guarding the mind. As noted in the previous message, Joh...[read more]