Intentional

“And the things you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” 2 Timothy 2:2 NKJV.

Most of us are just ordinary people. We work in different trades, but we all have gifts or talents dispensed to us by God. It is our relationship with Him that makes us extraordinary. I believe God intends that we, as Christians, be His messengers, sharing the Good News. We must intentionally reach out in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ, to our friends, neighbors, and community.

In 2 Timothy, we relive the Apostle Paul’s last words to his young protégé as he stirs up Timothy’s leadership gifts. We can apply these same scriptures to ourselves today, knowing that as Paul did, we will face many hardships; we may be shunned or ridiculed as soldiers of Jesus Christ. But we are not to be afraid to move onward into our communities witnessing.

“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.” Ephesians 4:11-12 NKJV

In this scripture, God gave the church at least five types of leaders. To define these roles I paraphrase John Maxwell’s observation: 1) the apostle to pioneer and establish new works and new leaders; 2) the prophet who speaks God’s Word to inspire, correct, and motivate; 3) the evangelist who shares Christ with outsiders and trains others to do so; 4) the pastor who shepherds, guides, and guards God’s people as they serve; and 5) the teacher who trains God’s people in the truth and teaches others to do so. Maxwell says, “When the church fills these five offices, ordinary people get equipped for ministry.”

My questions are these, and they apply to my church and all churches. Is the church growing, or has it become stagnant? Do we respect others’ leadership roles in the church, or do envy and jealousy get in the way? How are we serving and ministering to our immediate community? Do our lifestyles reflect Christlikeness? Do we build each other up? Do we work to introduce, welcome, and nurture new members or visitors to our church? I believe the answer to these questions will pretty much define where our churches are today nationwide.

“And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.” Acts 5:42 NKJV. So it should be with us today. We must be people of intention, intent, and passion to serve as a team for the good and the growth of the church of Jesus Christ.

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it – he will be blessed in what he does.” James 1:22-25 NIV.

We must read and study God’s Word. But it is much more important to do what God’s Word says. We can measure the effectiveness of our Bible study times by looking at our attitudes and behaviors. Do they correspond to God’s Word?

It seems contradictory that a law could give us freedom, but God’s law points out sin in us and allows us to ask His forgiveness. We are now free to obey God. We must live our lives on purpose, with purpose.

Information such as sermons, books, podcasts, and conferences are abundant to help us grow in our faith. Nonetheless, it is in the doing – in other words, in our intentional response – that our faith truly comes alive. We must be intentional in all that we say and do.

As we go about our day, consider ways to live out our faith purposefully. Small acts of kindness, words of encouragement, and moments of prayer can profoundly impact our psyche. The more such things become our goal, the more we will experience intimacy in our relationship with God.