"Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and
every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” John 15:2
Christianity is not a call to live
for self but a call into the Kingdom of God where we are equipped to impact and
change our world. It’s a call to impact lives positively. Ironically, we see
Christians that boast of five years and above in Christ without anyone or
anything to point to as their fruit.
There are two categories of fruits
that are expected from every believer; One of which is the fruit of the Spirit
that is expected to be reflected from every believer. This is the fruit that
comes from within the individual and it is reflected in character. This fruit
is spelt out in Galatians 5:22-23a NKJV: “But
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” The main focus of this article is on
the other, which is the fruits of our various ministries or services in God’s
vineyard.
There should be corresponding fruit,
outcome or product for every labour, work, service or ministry that is
rendered. It is foolishness to continue to engage in any labour that doesn’t
have any fruit or product to show for it. In the same vein, every ministry of
every Believer, no matter how small or insignificant it might be, should have
corresponding fruit, which is an indicator that the ministry of the minister is
productive. Ironically, there are a lot of services or ministries in God’s
house today which are “spiritually unproductive” but have turned to mere
entertainment, tradition and “religious activities”.
There should be corresponding fruit
for every ministry (service) that is being done in and outside the house of
God. And being fruitful in ministry is not limited to the five-fold ministry.
It is applicable to simple ministries and offices in the house of God like the
Ushering, Choir, Protocol, Drama, Deacons, Administrators, Elders, Pastors,
Evangelist, Teachers etc.
Someone like Apostle Paul understood
this concept, He is one of the most fruitful individual in the New Testament.
He wished to visit the Church in Rome and for what purpose? “that I might have some fruit among you
also, just as among the other Gentiles.” Roman 1:13. The Church at Corinth
were the fruits of Paul. 1 Corinthians 4:15, 9:2. He had a lot of fruits in his
ministry.
Come to think of it, of what use is
it for you to be called a deacon or deaconess in the Church without fruit or
any record of those you have affected positively? What is the spiritual value
of you being a chorister? Who has your ministry or even your christianity
impacted? Is it merely for entertaining the congregants?
Many believers are like the fig tree
that was cursed by Jesus Christ. He expected the tree to have brought forth
fruits, for its leaves were green, signifying that it got all the required
nutrients needed for fruitfulness (Mark 11:12-14, 20,21). In like manner, some
Christian have gotten enough word of God, revelations and spiritual nutrients
from their Churches, yet, there is nothing to show or nobody to point at as
their fruits of ministry.
As simple as the ministry of an
usher is, it should have fruit that is see-able.
Each minister in God’s vineyard should be able to point and say with certainty that “these are the
fruits of my ministry for such period of time”. When a Minister is not
conscious of seeing and having fruits in the ministry, such will end up living
a life of assumption that all is well, whereas, he is only engaging in a
foolish act without being productive.
The end point of every ministry is
to affect lives positively. No matter how abstract your ministry might seem
like, it must translate to changing lives. Any ministry that only ends in the “air”
or in the “spirit” without having an effect in changing a life is only mere
religiosity. The sound from the drum of the drum minister must be converted
from just sound to having a lasting impact in the heart of the one that is
being ministered to, otherwise, it is mere entertainment. Our ministry must
translate to becoming flesh in the life of humans.
Every ministry is not towards self
but towards another man. This implies that the primary purpose of your ministry
is not to make you feel good but to make another man feel good and be
transformed. No ministry should be done to satisfy one’s ego. It means that
your ministry should be aimed at adding value to another man. Every of your
ministrations should be aimed at changing lives.
I wish to state that our ministries
as believers are not and should not be limited to the four walls of our
Churches. Let’s go beyond the Church. The number of people we can affect in our
Church is limited compared to the vast majority of people outside the church. We
have more opportunities to affect many people that are outside the Church.
Let’s take advantage of our work environment, neighbourhoods, schools and
everywhere we go to make our ministry count.
Tips for Having Fruits in Ministry
1.
Strong desire. You must have a strong
desire to be productive in your ministry.
2. Intentional. You must be intentional
about having fruit. All your actions must be geared towards that purpose.
3.
Plan. You must have a strategic plan on
ground to achieve your aim.
4.
Priority. Make it your topmost priority
in life to impact lives.
5. Fulfil all condition. For you to see
fruits in your ministry, you must of necessity, meet all the condition that is
required.
6. Business approach. Apply business
approach to your ministry with the expectation of seeing result at the end of
every ministry exercise.
7. Conversion. You must see to it that
every spiritual experience or exercise is converted to something applicable to
the physical world.
8.
Take inventory and evaluate. Wisdom
demands that you take an inventory of how your ministry is faring, whether you
are achieving your aim or not. Evaluate
the fruitfulness of your ministry once in a while. You can do it monthly,
quarterly, semi-annually or annually.
Hindrances To Being Fruitful In Ministry
1.
Lack of intimate relationship with Jesus; It is an irony to think that you can bear fruits by your own power.
In this system, God the Father is the Vinedresser, Jesus is the Vine and we are
the branches who are supposed to remain attached to the vine in other for us to
bear fruit. If we refused to abide in the Vine, through personal and intimate
relationship, we shouldn’t expect to bear fruit. John 15:4-5.
2. Poor time management skill; There is a
required period of time needed to till every ground for the cultivation of
crops in other to see fruit. When you do not give the required time needed to
see you through to the stage of fruitfulness in your ministry because of lack
of good time management skill, you will not see the needed fruit in your
ministry. You must of necessity give a lot of time to your ministry if you must
be productive.
3. Life’s challenges; If you allow the
challenges of life and ministry to overwhelm you, you will never be productive.
Expecting every condition to be perfect for you to give in your best to your
ministry for fruitfulness is an expectation that will never come to pass. You
must learn and strive to be fruitful in any and every condition. Challenges
should be the stepping stone for you to fulfil God’s will.
4. Half-hearted service; You will never see
a good result on what you have not given yourself wholly to. It’s important you
give your whole being to the course you have chosen to pursue if you must see
result. There are definitely many other things that are striving to get your
attention. Make fulfilling your ministry your topmost priority.
5.
The system and cares of the world; The
system of this world is not designed to help you fulfil purpose. As a matter of
fact, it is conditioned to work against you and all that is God’s. It is
designed to distract you from being productive. If you must see fruits in your
ministry, you must overcome the system and cares of this world. You must live
for a higher purpose whose focus is above the world system where Christ is
seated.
6. Sin; If you are still enjoying the
pleasure of sin, then you are not ready to get result in your ministry. Sin has
a spiritual effect on your ministry; it kills your plant, that is your effort
in ministry, before it even bears fruit. Allowing sin in your life is allowing
spiritual parasite into your vineyard of ministry.
7.
Poor human relationship; A good
relationship with people makes your ministry to be accepted by all, which in
turn gives you the ground (heart) for the seed of your ministry to be planted for
fruit bearing. When you have poor relationship with people in your sphere of
life, you are indirectly building a blockage between you and the people you are
supposed to affect positively.
8.
Financial illiteracy; In most occasion,
money is needed to run a ministry whether it is personal or corporate ministry.
This could be a challenge especially when one is financially illiterate. We
have to learn to start small with the little we have and grow it big with time.
Our finance status is not the issue here, but the wisdom to maximize what we
have for greater productivity.
9. The Adversary, the devil; If you allow
the devil or you are ignorant of his schemes, he will destroy your effort in
ministry. This does not always come from the angle of spiritual attack but in
subtle way which you least expected, e.g. like bringing offence that leads to
grudges and bitterness which in turn sever your relationship with men and God.
Signs That Your Ministry Is Fruitful
1.
Sense of Fulfilment; Sense of fulfilment
and your conscience bearing witness.
2. Feedback and Testimony; Feedback from
people whom your ministry has affected is an indicator. Testimony of how your
ministry has changed them is a sign. Sometimes, praise from people is a sign
that your ministry is productive.
3. Increase in the Church; One of the
undeniable effects of every Christian bearing fruit is the increase in God’s
Church. This increase includes but not limited to numerical growth, spiritual
growth and life transformation.
“You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you
should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain…” John 15:16a.
