The Birth of a Ministry Vision
They said to me, “Things are not going well for those who returned to the province of Judah. They are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem has been torn down, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.” When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven. Nehemiah 1:3-4
Where Vision Comes From
If your church is like mine, there is any manner of the world’s brokenness within a 5-10 mile radius from where you gather for worship. For my church’s community in downtown San Antonio, that includes sex trafficking, drug/alcohol addiction, food insecurity, homelessness, a growing need for elder care, a ground-swell of immigrants, not to mention the occasional natural disaster (hurricanes, flooding, fires, etc.). And this list barely scratches the surface of all the problems facing our community. So, as a group of Christ followers wanting to be salt and light in our community, the prospects of finding a coherent ministry vision can seem overwhelming. Maybe you and your church leadership feel that same tension.
As exiles in a strange land (this place is not our home), we nonetheless have a God-given mandate to “work for the prosperity of the city” where we live. And, as I covered in the previous post, we in the American church are living a privileged life (at least by the world’s standards). So, we may or may not be personally connected to any of the biggest issues of injustice in our community. As a result, we need some help knowing just how to develop a ministry vision, i.e., where and how to start ministering to our community.
Recall the story of Jesus healing one lame man at the pool of Bethesda (John 5). That man was only one of scores (perhaps hundreds) of lame people at that pool. Jesus walked right past all of the others, healed that one man, and then left. He knew exactly where to go and what to do and, more importantly, what NOT to do…who NOT to heal. It is an extraordinary (and a little troubling) story.
As individual Christ followers, how do we know where to go and what to do? Equally important, as a gathered body of Christ followers, how do we find and then develop the right ministry vision? We learn all of this from Nehemiah.
What Breaks Your Heart(s)?
Born and reared in exile, Nehemiah had never been to Jerusalem. So, it was only after his brother made the journey there and back again that he learned of the heartbreaking circumstances there. The group of Jews which Ezra had mobilized just 12-15 years prior in order to continue the rebuilding of the Jewish culture was not doing very well at all. The city of Jerusalem was still in shambles and the people were suffering greatly at the hands of neighboring groups. Nehemiah’s heart was broken.
His was an uncommon level of sadness, one which drove him to his knees in prayer and fasting over a prolonged period of time. The pain haunted him. He could not shake it. No matter how many times he “laid it at the feet” of God, it just stayed with him. For Nehemiah, this was the birth of a calling on his life. This was no ordinary passion, nor a routine “God-please-help-all-the-sick-people-in-the-world” type of praying. The pain and suffering was specific and profound. And it only grew and deepened in Nehemiah’s heart and mind. Doesn’t it work the same way for us? And for our churches?
I think churches sometimes make the mistake of entrusting the entire vision/discernment process to their pastor(s) and/or leader(s). Frankly, it is an easier process. That way, none of the rest of us have to do anything but wait for them to tell us the vision. The problem, of course, with finding ministry vision that way is that those pastors/leaders sometimes fail (morally, spiritually or otherwise). And if they had the vision, then the vision fails along with them. On the other hand, when the ministry vision is coming from the hearts of the entire body of believers, then no amount of obstacles or struggles will stop us from pursuing it. Our leaders can be human beings and can fail us (as every human being is want to do), and the vision remains.
So, in our running metaphor for this series of posts, Nehemiah is not representative of our church leaders; he is representative of the entire church. God gave him his ministry vision through a broken heart. And God gives churches our ministry vision through our collective broken hearts. To be clear, not every broken heart is necessarily the birth of a ministry. But every calling from God on a person’s (or a church’s) life manifests itself through a broken heart.
Why Prayer is Foundational to this Discernment Process
Nine times throughout his story in scripture Nehemiah shows himself to be a man of extraordinary prayer. This is never more foundational than at the very beginning of this ministry calling on his life. After hearing of the horrendous circumstances in Jerusalem, Nehemiah fasts and prays for four months before God finally opens a door to begin. Let that sink in: four months of prayer and fasting.
Here is why that matters. Nehemiah was blessed to have plenty of worldly power with which to accomplish the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem. As cupbearer to the king, he had more than enough political sway to proceed. Moreover, he had financial power as well as social power. But Nehemiah knew better than to take on God’s work using the world’s powers. If he was going to answer God’s call to this task, he would do so relying on God’s power. And God’s power comes from prayer.
Similarly, the American church is blessed with powers of this world. We have economic power and we have political power. Depending on the locale, we enjoy a good degree of social power as well. We can accomplish much (by the world’s standards) with these powers. Look around our culture today and you will see many, many instances of the American church choosing to operate with the world’s powers. But if we want to accomplish things of eternal significance, we cannot (and should not) rely upon the powers of this world. We should rely upon God’s power. Why would we even want to use any other power?
Back to John 5 and Jesus’ healing at the pool of Bethesda. Jesus had extraordinary focus (to heal one man and then leave) because Jesus had an extraordinary prayer life. Likewise, Nehemiah would demonstrate extraordinary focus in the rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem because he had an extraordinary prayer life. If our churches want the kind of spiritual focus and power needed to understand with clarity God’s calling on us, we need an extraordinary prayer life. In short, our ability to receive ministry vision from God requires prayer. And the power with which we are to fulfill those callings likewise requires prayer. Nehemiah teaches us that prayer is central to everything we are called upon to join God in doing.
But Nehemiah teaches us so much more. Stay tuned.