Catalyst for Multiplication

Joshua 1:9 (NKJV) Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

The word “go” has been a big part of my life since I accepted Christ. I have not traveled to the nations, but I have put my hands to whatever I could. I remember attending college for a degree in pre-law then going to my church and working as their secretary for a hundred dollars a week. That was all they could afford to pay someone. My husband and I were engaged at the time. I remember those who were in the church jealous of all that I was doing, saying it was only because I was going to marry the pastor’s son. Let me in on a little secret, it was not who I knew, it was because of the fire burning inside me that I was able to accomplish so much. It was my “yes” attitude that they called on me to do so much.

1 Corinthians 2:3-5 (MSG) I was unsure of how to go about this, and felt totally inadequate – I was scared to death, if you want the truth of it – and so nothing I said could have impressed you or anyone else. But the Message came through anyway. God’s Spirit and God’s power did it, which made it clear that your life of faith is in response to God’s power, not to some fancy mental or emotional footwork by me or anyone else.

It was a new life for me when I accepted Christ. I got close to all those that I could to learn more from. I was at church for every service. If they needed someone in the nursery, I was there. If they needed a sound tech, teach me. They needed a bass play, I will learn. We had an assistant pastor that used the opportunities of those zealous, like myself, to go door to door or at concerts to hand out tracks with our church’s information on the back. I was not just serving during office hours, because that was what I was paid for, I looked for opportunities.

I got close to all those that I could to learn more from.

I am reading John Bevere’s new book X: Multiply Your God-Given Potential. There is a section titled “Catalyst” and on pages 166 and 167 he talks about the time that Abraham sent his servant to find a wife for his son Isaac. Reading his account gave me insight to another biblical person that I identify with. I identify with Rebekah.

Genesis 24:10-21 (AMP) Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels, and set out, taking some of his master’s good things with him; so he got up and journeyed to Mesopotamia [between the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers], to the city of Nahor [the home of Abraham’s brother]. He made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of the evening when women go out to draw water. And he said, “O Lord, God of my master Abraham, please grant me success today, and show loving kindness (faithfulness) to my master Abraham. Behold, I stand here at the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water; now let it be that the girl to whom I say, ‘Please, let down your jar so that I may [have a] drink,’ and she replies, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels water to drink’—may she be the one whom You have selected [as a wife] for Your servant Isaac; and by this I will know that You have shown loving kindness (faithfulness) to my master.” Before Eliezer had finished speaking (praying), Rebekah came out with her [water] jar on her shoulder. Rebekah was the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor. The girl was very beautiful, a virgin and unmarried; and she went down to the spring and filled her jar and came up. Then the servant ran to meet her, and said, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar.” And she said, “Drink, my lord”; and she quickly lowered her jar to her hand, and gave him a drink. When she had given Eliezer a drink, she said, “I will also draw water for your camels until they have finished drinking.”  So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, and ran again to the well and drew water for all his camels. Meanwhile, the man stood gazing at Rebekah in [reverent] silence, [waiting] to know if the Lord had made his trip successful or not.

John Bevere writes, “A true servant doesn’t wait to be asked when a need is evident; he or she moves forward immediately. In all my years of experience, it’s become quite evident that when people consistently wait to be told, they don’t multiply. Those who are always first to go into action are the ones who increase.”

As I look back to why God called my husband and I to pastor our church, I remember our early moments serving in our church. The reason we are pastors is not because his dad was the pastor before him. The reason we are the pastors now is because we jumped into action. We never did it knowing that we would have this responsibility one day. We did it because we had a heart to serve. Serving with the expectation of one day to have a title or reward is not really serving, that is called working. Serving should be easy, not saying it should not make you uncomfortable. When we serve and get out of our comfort zones, that is where real growth happens. I am so thankful that I did not listen to those snide comments or take them to heart. I pray that you do not listen to anything that tries to distract you from serving where you are called. Keep focused!