Evan Doyle

As you’ve probably learned before, I love quotes.   Like, with a passion.  In fact, I like them so much I actually subscribe to the Quote of the Day RSS feed from BrainyQuote.com.  At about 1 this morning, I’m looking around my RSS feeds and see the new quote of the day.  It’s from Pablo Picasso, and it says: “Action is the foundational key to all success.”

Initially, I kind of just brushed the statement off.  Then I really got to thinking about it.  It’s really true, and very applicable to our ministries.  Our world has lots of visionaries.  They’re really smart people who tell us what the world could be like if we did this, or how the world would change if only this happened.  They’re fascinating to listen to, and we’re enthralled just hearing what they have to say.  Leonard Sweet is one of the first visionaries that comes to my mind.  (He has an interview in the November/December issue of K!)  Visionaries are pretty cool people, in my opinion.

However, for as much as I love our visionaries, they don’t do much.  They spend their lives in “what if’s” and “could be’s”, but it’s up to us to actually make it happen.  Go back to the Picasso quote.  Imagine if Picasso had just spent his life talking about what his paintings could look like and what would happen if he painted them.  Needless to say, Picasso certainly wouldn’t have been quite the art celebrity he became.  Picasso found success because he acted on a vision. Continue Reading…

This post is part of a 6 part series.  To read the previous posts, click here.

Guideline 5: Do I really have time for this?

So, at times during the course of human events things come up that cause the blog post that was supposed to be written Friday to be written Sunday afternoon!  This is one of those times.  Now, on to the actual post…

This last guideline really wraps up the previous 4 guidelines into one, just with less detail.  The other 4 should still be used, this one is just like the free bonus.  ;)  What do I mean, however, by do I really have time for this?  Here’s what I mean:

1. Will something else have to suffer to do this: calling, family, spiritual well-being, obedience, physical condition.
2. Time for emergencies: if an emergency situation came up (death, injury, child sick), would it put me behind for days on my work?
3.  Previous commitments: In the most basic sense of the term, do I actually have the physical time to add something else to my day?

This post is part of a 6 part series.  To read the previous posts, click here.

Guideline 4: Does it help or hurt my or others’ spiritual walk?

This is one of the most duh kind of things in the entire list, but often forgotten.  Before we even consider doing something, we have to consider its spiritual implications.  Is what I’m about to do take away from my ability to commune with God on a daily basis (a way that we bring God glory)?

I started this series with one of the “cliché” verses that are repeated over and over in the church today.  Now, we need to think about one of our cliché phrases: What would Jesus do?  Honestly, would Christ be found doing what I am doing right now?  Does it help to lift someone up spiritually?

Not everything in life is obviously spiritual.  We don’t have to spend every waking moment we have doing something inherently spiritual.  But there are some things that can be without seeming terribly obvious.  Spending time growing closer to family and friends is spiritual in that we grow closer in God-ordained relationships.  Sometimes, just getting away is spiritual.  Jesus did it a lot: He went out on a boat to the middle of the lake to get away from the people that constantly crowded Him.

But if it’s not doing anything that matters in the light of eternity, why waste time doing it?  What we do should always drive us to our life calling, and bring us closer to fulfilling it.  Doing something should not draw us or those around us away from God.  If it is, we need to stop.  Like, as in now.  Just do it.  It’ll be transformational.

This post is part of a 6 part series.  To read the previous posts, click here.

Guideline 3: Can someone else handle this task just as capably?

I have a tendency to forget that there are other people that can do things just as well, if not better, than I can.  My personality says that if I want it done right, I need to do it myself.  That leads to me slowly going insane as I try to do everything myself!  That doesn’t work.

So how do I keep myself from going insane AND bring glory to God in what I do?  I just remember that other people can handle it.  I try to think of other people that can do the job.  I have trouble getting past the thought that I’m being lazy or shirking responsibility.  But I’m really not.

In fact, I’m following Jesus’ example.  In Mark 6:7 (NASB), the Bible says: “And He summoned the twelve and began to send them out in pairs…”  Jesus knew He couldn’t reach the entire world by Himself.  So he sent out His twelve disciples to help Him out.

Do the same in your ministry.  Have several people close to you that you trust that you can say, “I need some help” to and they’ll be there to help whenever you need them.  What better example to follow than Christ Himself?   You can do it yourself if you need to or have time to, but otherwise, don’t be afraid to let others help you out!  That’s the way I see it.

This post is part of a 6 part series.  To read the previous posts, click here.

Guideline 2: Has God called me to do this?

Today’s guideline is one of the most important.  Nay, I say it is THE most important.  However, children’s workers seem to have such a hard time distinguishing between God’s will and what they want.  It’s so important to make the important distinction between the two.

It’s easy just to say that we want God’s will and we want to bring glory to Him.  It’s another to actually do it.  You won’t find God’s will just going about your daily life.  The Bible lays out three very simple ways to find God’s will: prayer, fasting, and studying the Scriptures.  If we aren’t actively seeking it, chances are pretty good we’re not going to find it.  James 4:8 (NASB) tells us: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”  Before you do anything, and I do mean anything, make sure that it’s what you’re really supposed to be doing.  That’s how you truly bring God glory.

It’s important to note that none of these guidelines this week are mutually exclusive.  They all depend on one another.  But it’s safe to say that this one is the key upon which all the others depend.  Be sure to check back tomorrow for guideline 3!