"Like longevity in life, some basic things are needed -
right genes [to be a child of God], right diet [God's Word],
right exercise [involvement in ministry]
and right environment [a place in God's community - the Church].
The Apostle Paul set it as his goal to walk worthy and finish well. So should we!"
Yet what does the practical outworking of this look like in real life and ministry? How do expats working, ministering and seeking to be Christ’s “…witnesses… [in] Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth" (Acts 1.8, NASB) sustain long and productive careers?
Based off of a sermon by my home church pastor and subsequent study, I’ve identified seven essential priorities that help protect those in ministry, particularly cross-cultural ministry, from burnout and the temptation to sin... ones that direct and give hope for the future... ones that remind that all is grace and a gift from God… ones that will hopefully allow us serve well for exactly the time God has chosen for us…
Those priorities are:
- Continuously and consistently seeking the Lord
- Praying without ceasing
- Balancing personal growth, rest and ministry
- Welcoming accountability
- Committing to marriage and family
- Choosing to be teachable, even in difficult circumstances; and
- Determining to be a genuine team player.
This post is looking at priority number five – committing to marriage and family.
Let me start off by saying that I do not believe there is one hard and fast way to do this… this commitment thing. How I demonstrate my commitment to my marriage and family might look quite different than how you do. Key is that 1) an intentional, purposeful choice to first made - choosing commitment, 2) a continuous effort is made - working on commitment, and 3) a covenant relationship is kept, clinging to commitment… regardless.
Regardless of the difficulties.
Regardless of the inconveniences.
Regardless of the words and opinions of others…
So what do I mean by commitment to family, in a biblical sense, if you will? I wasn’t exactly sure. It is something we talk about, casually throwing into edifying conversation – but what does God say commitment looks like? To try and find out, I searched both commit and commitment in an online concordance.
First, there are verses like...
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To read the rest, please join me over at Missionary Moms Companion, where I'm posting today!
Hope to see you there...
Be sure and pop over to at least look at the photos... as you'll see our Tim and the kids exploring this new place of ministry!
