Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. 2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; but the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you.The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising (Isaiah 60:1-3 – NKJV).
It’s time for us in the body of Christ to fine tune ourselves and get ready to be the best we can be for God! The world situation is changing rapidly and all signs point towards the rapture of the church and the second coming of Christ.
I believe that as calamity and disaster continue to increase, many will turn to the Lord and be opened to receive ministry. We have the help our needy world is looking for! Here are some things that we can do to be ready to minister to others in the days ahead.
First, commit to an attitude of excellence in all that you do. Colossians 3: 23-24 reads, And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.
Give everything you do the best you have, both on your job and also in your church life. If you volunteer in an area of ministry at your local church, give it your best. Be on time to events! Do what you do as if Jesus were your boss. Volunteer as unto Him.
Ephesians 6:6-8 reads, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with good-will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.
Secondly, think unity. There is strength when we unify with fellow believers. The power of the early church was in their being in one accord. How we treat fellow believers is how we treat Jesus Himself. An atmosphere of unity is a breeding ground for the Holy Spirit to manifest Himself. Be quick to forgive and quick to love. Believe the best of others.
Thirdly, ask the Father to manifest spiritual gifts. 1 Corinthians 14:1(NIV) reads,
Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy. Ask the Father to use you in spiritual gifts. Before you attend church services, ask the Father for to manifest His love for the people through spiritual gifts. Be open for Him to use you if He so chooses.
In your daily life, walk in love and ask the Father to make you a blessing to others. He may choose to manifest the Word of Knowledge or Gifts of Healings through you. Remain conscious throughout your day that He wants to use you.
When we gather in church meetings, we actually become collectively a temple of the Holy Spirit. Yes, we individually have Him living in us, but there is a special manifestation of the presence of God among us when we gather together. The depth of the manifestation is determined by our desire for Him. So it honors God when we choose be on time to our local church services. We can show by your actions that we want the best that God has and that we want others to receive. Think about this, chronically arriving late to a church service on purpose is really showing disrespect to the Father and a lack of desire for Him to give His best. And being late signals others who may be visiting (and that need the Lord) that we really aren’t all that committed to what we believe!
These are important days for the kingdom of God. Jesus is coming soon. So many need ministry. Let’s go the extra mile in all we do. It’s time for the Father to show Himself strongly through each one of us!