Only Spiritual Vitality Anchored in Jesus Christ Can Lead to an Effective and Enduring Ministry
For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, who spreads out its roots by the river, and shall not fear when heat comes, but its leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. — Jeremiah 17:8
Remain in me, and I in you. As the branch can't bear fruit by itself, unless it remains in the vine, so neither can you, unless you remain in me. — John 15:4
Author
Dr. Roberto Miranda
Summary: To carry out an excellent, effective, and enduring ministry, we need a robust spirituality nourished by the presence of the Holy Spirit. We need oil both to face our daily lives and to share with those we serve. By abiding in Jesus through an intimate relationship with the Spirit, the Word, and a continuous, disciplined devotional life, we receive abundant vitality to inspire, impact, and bless others. Ministry imparts life more than intellectual knowledge: human skills may sustain it for a time, but without the life of Christ, dryness, barrenness, loss, and destruction eventually emerge. Whenever we feel dry, weary, or burned out, we must return to drink from the waters of the Spirit.
Spiritual vitality is required to carry out a ministry of excellence and effectiveness. The minister, the servant of God, whether male or female, serves out of an abundance of spiritual energy and of the presence of the Holy Spirit within him or her. In fact, I believe that we serve out of the overflow of spiritual energy within us. To face the challenges of ministry successfully, we will need a robust and overflowing spirituality.
There is an energy we need for our own consumption, simply to process the events, challenges, and needs of everyday life. Like the wise virgins, we need oil for our own lamp, but we also need it to share with those whom we serve.
From that overflow which God gives us through closeness and intimacy with the Spirit, from that “abide in me, and I in you” of which Jesus Christ speaks, there arises an overflow of anointing and vitality that we share with others and through which we impart that vitality to those whom we serve.
I have always thought that ministry takes place more through the impartation and spread of life than through intellectual, academic explanation or teaching. Thus, a vital spirituality is required: being anchored in Jesus, rooted in Christ, connected to the Word, and maintaining a continuous, disciplined devotional life that then results in an effervescence, a vitality of spirit that enables us to touch others, impact others, inspire others, impart that vitality to others, and bless others. That vital spirituality is indispensable.
A person can minister for a long time based exclusively on human knowledge or skills, but sooner or later, because it is not the life of Jesus manifesting itself in and through us, spiritual dryness and barrenness will arise, and there will generally be loss and destruction as well.
Therefore, it is very important that the servant of God, whether male or female, always seek a very high level of spiritual vitality. And when we feel dry, tired, or burned out, it is time to return once again to drink from the waters of the Spirit.