by Ken Turner | May 28, 2015 | Faith, Outreach, Spiritual Growth
Jim and Jan met in college and got married after graduation. They had a couple of kids and eventually were introduced to a growing church in their community through some friends they met through their kids soccer team. Neither Jim nor Jan grew up in church but they were beginning to grow more curious about it and knew they wanted to raise their kids with strong values. After attending their friend’s church for a while they grew to understand the meaning of a personal relationship with Christ and both of them eventually accepted Christ and began to grow as new Christians. It wasn’t long before they were introduced to the concept of “ministry involvement.” People would ask, “Have you found a ministry yet in the church? What ministries are you guys interested in here at the church? Hey, you guys know that we need lots of help here in several ministries at the church!” So they went on a quest to learn about all the “ministry needs” in the church and picked one.
Fast forward a few years and catch up with Jim and Jan… the faithful church attending Christian couple who have been integrated into the church for several years now. They have a nice home in a safe neighborhood, they have some good friends with kids the same age as their own with similar values, and they have faithfully served in various ministries in the church. But something seems to be missing. They have created a safe haven for themselves and their family but they sometimes just feel so worn out running back and forth doing so many things at church in the name of ministry. And there’s another problem… they long to be connected to something meaningful. They can’t put their finger on it but there is an unrest and they dream of being able to do something that would be impactful, something that would be life-changing, something that feels really fulfilling and looks like things they read about in the Bible.
Sound familiar? Now, I’m not knocking the genuine needs for workers to function in many ministries within the church. I’ve been in full-time ministry myself since way back in the late 80’s. After all, I did a quick web search and found a long list of ministries listed on a few church websites. Each one of these ministries need workers.
Here are a few ministry opportunities that were listed on just a few church websites…
Welcome ministry, Worship ministry, Children’s ministry, Youth ministry, Usher ministry, Greeter ministry, Cleaning the church ministry, Set up crew ministry, Men’s ministry, Women’s ministry, Prayer ministry, Bus ministry, Kitchen team ministry, Counting the money ministry, Grounds crew ministry, Visitation ministry, Sunday school teacher/helper ministry, Nursery ministry, Deacon ministry, Choir, Orchestra, Singles ministry, Couples ministry, Senior saints ministry, College ministry, Small group ministry… well, you get the picture.
Here’s a thought, “What would happen if every Christian found a way to to have DEEP MINISTRY IMPACT in their community while still meeting the needs of their local church?” I don’t think it is an issue of serving in the church OR serving in the community… I think we need to make room for both.
Most of my readers know that I spent about two decades in church youth ministry and a few years ago God led me to begin a youth outreach ministry to unchurched youth. If you aren’t familiar with the story about how God redirected my ministry you can listen to an interview I did with Wayne Shepherd here https://kenturnerministries.org/radio-interview-first-person-wayne-shepherd/ on Moody Radio or read more about it here. https://kenturnerministries.org/a-window-into-juvenile-detention-ministry/
Here are a few rewards I have experienced by opening up to ministry outside the church:
- My Christian Life Has Been Rejuvenated. Ephesians 2:5 mentions how we are “quickened” or made alive as a result of our salvation. By ministering to those who don’t know Christ, I find great excitement in talking to them about who He is and how He has changed my life.
- There’s Not A Lot Of Competition. You will notice an unusual phenomenon in the church… sometimes several Christians are competing for ministry opportunities. “When will I get asked to sing, teach, lead, chair a committee, serve as a deacon, plan an important event…” Sometimes these thoughts literally steel all the joy from our Christian life! But there are so many needs outside the church and there’s room for many more people to connect and serve.
- It Feels Like I’m Doing What Jesus Was Talking About. James 1:27 says it plainly that pure religion, or could we say authentic faith, looks more like this… visiting the fatherless and widows in their time of need and keeping ourselves unstained from the world. There’s something very rewarding about knowing we are lined up with Jesus priorities of ministry.
- It Brings New Purpose To My Spiritual Growth. When you are talking with people regularly who don’t know much if anything about God or His word you are forced to answer their questions. Questions like, “If God really loves me then why is this happening in my life? If He is really real then how do you explain this? Can you tell me what God is really like? How has He changed your life? Why do you believe in Him?” Now, don’t let the questions scare you… I’ve found people really want honest answers but they don’t expect us to have ALL the answers all figured out. They just want honesty in a Christian friend who really cares about them.
- It Makes Service Within The Church More Meaningful. I promise you that you will sing with more joy in the church choir, you will bring greater enthusiasm to your role as a greeter, you will greet all your duties within the church with more heart if you are serving Him outside the church in a meaningful ministry.
Give me your feedback. What have been some of your greatest experiences in finding fulfilling ways to do ministry for the Lord? I’d enjoy your feedback in the comments section of this article. Like and share it to invite others into the conversation!
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by Ken Turner | Dec 5, 2014 | Spiritual Growth
Being born in a non-Christian home, then seeing my parents accept Christ when I was ten years old gives me a certain perspective I’ve always been grateful for. I know the difference between life without Christ and life with Him. I saw the change in our home. It was a drastic change and impacted me deeply. After a few months of watching how God could change mom and dad, I was convicted and I was convinced He could do the same for me and I accepted Christ into my life at age eleven. It has been an amazing journey to follow God and see His plans unfold in my life but there have been a few times when His plan freaked me out and fear caused me to stop dead in my tracks.
The most important decision you will ever make in this life is the decision to accept (or not accept, which is actually to reject) Christ as your personal Savior. But becoming a Christian is the starting line and there are many steps ahead that lead to the “abundant life” Jesus talks about.
Recently, I have been reading and studying the book of Hebrews. There is a passage that addresses a significant glitch in our progress of growing with God. The glitch is explained in Hebrews 3:15-19. Here is the picture. The children of Israel had been wandering in the wilderness for decades and seeking the land of Canaan… the promised land. Once they found it, there were some within the group that were overcome with a lack of trust in God. They were afraid to enter in and they literally were standing at the threshold but were so overcome with the fear of unbelief that the passage in Hebrews says they died in the wilderness. The gruesome description states it this way, “But with whom was he grieved forty years? Was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.”
Can you imagine following God for 40 years, eating manna and walking miles and miles and miles, sleeping in the wilderness, sacrificing and paying the price for the long awaited prize of living in the “promised land” and knowing you are standing in the doorway having completed 99.9% of the spiritual journey and… you stopped. Not only did you stop, you died in the wilderness and you never ever experienced the joy that was waiting for you. The joy that would have been all yours if you had taken just one more step of faith… one more step of obedience… one more movement that required you to fully trust God. That decision on that day made by so many of the children of Israel illustrates something significant about the spiritual journey you and I are on right now. And this is it. It is possible that the one thing that is keeping you from spiritual victory, living the abundant life Jesus talks about, experiencing fullness of joy and a peace that passes all understanding is simply your spirit of unbelief at the one critical moment God is ready to do something in your life that is life changing. It is that heart of hesitation you have caved in to so often when God was ready to show you a new piece of His divine plan and it freaked you out! You were scared and you stopped… dead in your tracks and you never moved another step toward it. It is what Hebrews calls the sin of unbelief. As much as we say that we are fully trusting God, fully relying on Him and fully obeying Him, the fact is that we have most likely missed some incredible God ordained opportunities by allowing fear and unbelief to cause us to hesitate. Today is a new day. Why not take some time today to be still and ask God for clear understanding about the next step He has for your life? And move toward it with the faith and courage that He will provide. And don’t ask Him for His plan, walk up to it and look at it and freeze. Go. Move. Take that one more step and be amazed at the victory God will pour into your spiritual life because you trusted Him. You believed. You obeyed. You found “rest” for your soul.
“While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses. But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness? And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” Hebrews 3:15-19
In Christ,
Ken Turner
[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][fusion_content_boxes layout=”icon-with-title” columns=”1″ class=”” id=””][fusion_content_box title=”Give a Gift and Help Change The Life of a Teen” backgroundcolor=”#d8d8d8″ icon=”fa-comment” iconcolor=”” circlecolor=”” circlebordercolor=”” iconflip=”” iconrotate=”” iconspin=”no” image=”” image_width=”35″ image_height=”35″ link=”” linktarget=”_self” linktext=”” animation_type=”0″ animation_direction=”down” animation_speed=”0.1″]PS. Eighty-five to ninety percent of the youth we minister to are fatherless. This year we have been able to reach more youth than ever before and new ministry doors continue to open in youth facilities to provide Bible studies and discipleship. Approximately 60 donors make up our “ministry team” of partners that makes it all possible. Their gifts range from $25 up to several hundred dollars per month. Most of our supporters give monthly but some choose to give annually or quarterly. We’ve been blessed this year and with the expanded growth in to several states and every financial gift has made a big difference! Words can’t describe the gratitude we have for donors like you that stand in the gap to bring the hope of the gospel of Christ to the youth we serve. Please consider a year end gift to help reach high-risk and fatherless youth into the coming year! You can mail your gift to Ken Turner Ministries, PO Box 1325, Dayton, TN 37321 or give online at www.kenturnerministries.org/give
Click here to print out a giving card to fill out and return by mail. GIVING CARD[/fusion_content_box][/fusion_content_boxes][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
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by Ken Turner | Feb 17, 2013 | Ministry Update, Peer Pressure, Spiritual Growth, Teens, Youth Ministry
High Impact Teens and the Marion County Juvenile Detention Center in Indianapolis, Indiana have partnered together once again for the annual Man Up Conference. Our ministry team of volunteers will spend the entire day on Saturday, February 23, 2013, teaching principles of manhood to incarcerated youth. 85-90% of detained teenagers are “fatherless” and lack the daily support of a loving and engaged dad.
The Man Up Conference was provided by donations from friends who chose to sponsor the event.
If you would like to join our ministry support team and invest in the high-risk youth we serve, we would love to hear from you.
Consider becoming a part of the High Impact Team and support the ministry monthly or by making a quarterly or annual gift.
2 WAYS TO GIVE:
- Mail your gift to: Ken Turner Ministries, Inc., PO Box 1325, Dayton, TN 37321
DOWNLOAD GIVING FORM HERE
- Give Online at www.kenturnerministries.org/give
- Ken Turner Ministries, Inc. is recognized by the IRS as a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization and all donations are tax deductible. (EIN number 26-2472955)
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