I just finished reading Clayton King’s post of the the bowing of a seasoned veteran of ministry. He has done a small series of posts on thoughts for young ministers and seasoned; very good reads. In this last post, the seasoned veteran shared something that sticks with me. He said, “Once you let anybody other than Jesus tell you what to do, you begin to die.”
A lot of things have been going on in the foreground of my life recently. I have been faced with decisions on how to act when you know everyone is watching, next steps to take in my personal life, having my car hit three times in 6 weeks where I believe if it wasn’t for the favor of God the other parties insurance wouldn’t have come through; just a multitude of situations that test my belief limits.
This past summer I made a vow to continue to pursue God’s calling on my life, no matter the cost. I’ve known since a very young age that I was called out, separated unto the kingdom of God. I was talking to my dad the other day about this very matter. It seems the more we try and press on, the more we are pressed upon. My father, like I, is called as well. “Dad,” I said, “We can never quit. We can never give up.”
Beyond my father and I, my family has been called, but most have ran. My uncle started down that path; however, for various reasons walked away from ministry many years ago. My grandpa told us before his passing that he too ran from the calling of ministry as did his father.  Out of curiousity, I researched my family line and found that we had been ministers of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, but some years back that line was broken.
Paul writes in Romans 1:16, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes..”(NIV)
This is my public profession. I am determined to follow the plan God has on my life, whatever road he deems to takes me down.
Awesome Post Mark. Just what I needed to hear. Thanks for the encouragement.
Mark – Clayton lives right here in my hometown and was just at my church a few weeks ago for our fall revival. If you’re interested, you can grab his three sermons from our website:
Clayton King Sermons