Class Assignment: Reflection on Acts

This was a reflection from the book of Acts from one of my class assignments this quarter.

          Many times ministries will suffer because of a lack of structure. What begins as an eagerness to be involved in every aspect of the life of the church, a pastor can become overwhelmed by the menial tasks that need to be completed. This desire is usually present because the pastor genuinely wants everything to be a beautiful reflection of God, and all aspects of the church to compliment each other, a continuity in the ministry. This quickly becomes a snare, and rather than the ministry as a whole reflecting the glory of God, it reflects a person, the pastor.

            In the midst of ministry struggle, often in desperation, pastors will look for the immediate answer, subscribing to all material available on how to lead, the value of teamwork and how to be a better “coach”. While these resources are not evil, they can feed the self-centered approach of the pastor, affirming that he is the solution to fixing the problem. The problem becomes “them” focused, and the solution becomes “me” focused. However, according to the early church, the problem was “me” focused, and the solution was “them” focused.

            In Acts chapter six, the apostles were in a season of amazing, unplanned, exponential growth. They were in the favor of God and still in the favor of man. Their community was caring for itself, not because of structured ministry outreaches, but because of the disciples’ obedience to the teachings of Christ. The apostles were beginning to feel the strain of not being able to resolve and be in every aspect of the ministry.

“So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, ‘It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.’” (Acts 6:2-4 NIV)

Rather than blaming the problem on the new followers and demanding more of a sacrifice of their personal time, they looked at their limitations (the problem), and released disciples to care for the community (the solution).

            By releasing others to minister, regardless of previous experience, the apostles were able to stay committed their purpose. They were not distracted by having too much to do.  “So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.” (Acts 6:7 NIV) As a result; there was increase and an increase in maturity! May we look to our Creator in times of challenge, it is he that created us and knows the most productive way to fulfill his mission.