Burned out? Exhausted? Needing work breaks more and more often? Perhaps these are signs that you really needed a sabbatical, or a getaway. More so, it’s a gentle prompting that true ministry begins with true receiving.
I am currently reading through a wonderful book on spiritual formation titled Deep-rooted in Christ by a Korean-American pastor named Joshua Choonmin Kang. Translated from Korean, it is the first book published in English by this prolific practitioner of Christian spirituality. His chapter Let Yourself Be Filled prompts today’s meditation on what it means to truly give and receive.
As Christians, we all like to talk up—even hype—the notion of giving being more important than receiving. Many well-meaning believers quote Acts 20:35: “In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus Himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
The book of Acts is narrated by Luke, the disciple of Christ. The person exhorting the audience is none other than Paul the Apostle, evangelist and martyr for Jesus. Giving is good. Giving is necessary. Giving is better than receiving. However, the question is where are we giving from? From whom are we being empowered to give? On what basis are we practicing true giving?
Easier said than done. After all, giving is never a natural inclination of human beings. Babies insist on grabbing milk bottles and crying out for attention all the time. Teenagers insist on their own versions of growing independence. Young people insist on their rights, sometimes overshadowing responsibilities. Even the elderly insist on their right to be treated fairly in a world that can so easily cast them aside when they are no longer earning as much or contributing effectively as before. The stark fact of life is this: We can only give when we are filled. There is no giving without any receiving in the first place. Hear what Kang has to say:
“True ministry begins not with giving but with receiving. We need to be filled up before we have anything to give to others. John told us that ‘God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him’ (Colossians 1:19 NIV). We should be pleased to be channels for God’s truth and grace. Many servants of God, acting out of good will, move too quickly into ministry. They focus on giving before they’re been refilled and reenergized. They become exhausted before they know it.”
Isn’t this the reason why many of us in ministry burn out so easily? When we fail to receive well, we fail to give well. One of my professors at Regent-College constantly warns us: “The quality of your output must be equaled or exceeded by the quality of your input.”
True. Like charging up our batteries. When we give time for our “batteries” to be charged to full capacity, we will be able to discharge our responsibilities more effectively. Just think of a laptop computer that is rated 8 hours of battery life when it is fully charged. If we are only charged up 50%, obviously we shut down when we approach the 4th hour mark.
One more thing. The discipline of receiving and waiting on God`s time also prepares us to be more patient with people. If we rush into ministry, we can also do the unhelpful thing of rushing people in order to fit our ministry. It ought to be the other way around. We wait upon the Lord for His filling. We receive His fullest grace and peace. We step confidently into the world, aware that we ourselves are nothing. Like the Samaritan woman at the well, filled with the joy of Jesus` promises, we are then able to point others to Christ for true filling of needs. If we rush into ministry, we’re in danger of pointing others to ourselves and our own versions of what ministry is all about.
May our ministry be one that reflects an overflowing river of grace and peace from God, and not one that squeezes ourselves dry—making us brittle and bitter over time. True giving must first come from true receiving. Not the other way round.
Why do we burn out so easily? It is because we rush into ministry before being filled. We fail to recognize that true giving comes from true receiving. Instead, we need to acknowledge that it is God`s filling and constant refilling of us that brings glory to Him, not to us.
A final thought from Kang: “There`s a lesson here for those who want to give away what they haven`t yet received. Let`s not be impatient or overeager. Let`s wait for our reservoirs to fill with grace.” —submitted by Conrade Yap, Canada
daisymarygoldr on November 14, 2011 at 3:41 pm
In the words of John Wesley, “When you catch on fire, others will come to watch you burn.” Christians who receive the Holy Spirit burn hot with fire (Luke 3:16), but never burn out.
When the Spirit of God is living in believers (Rom 8:9), the Church becomes the burning bush. We are the light of the world and God causes us to constantly shine before others. So, for true ministers of God there is no such thing as burn out.
Burn out happens when ministry is a “career” rather than a “call”. Many get enrolled in Bible colleges for all the wrong reasons. Some launch into ministry with great zeal to serve people and choose church work as a career path. Still others are “on fire for God” after attending a Christian conference or going on a short-mission trip.
It is only a matter of time before such Christians serving their self agendas get overwhelmed with anxiety, stress, and fear of failure to impress, perform and succeed—similar to what happens in the secular world. Instead of being about our heavenly Father’s business, people get trapped in the devils’ busyness.
Such people without God’s calling start out with high hopes and work in their own strength soon fall victim to disappointment, disillusionment, and depression brought about by their own doings. When there is no vision people perish in blindness and with no anointing saints abandon the faith.
When God calls us into ministry He appoints, anoints, envisions, empowers, and equips us to be effective witnesses. Humanly speaking, we do experience physical, emotional and mental exhaustion (2 Corinthians 6:5) but our lamps don’t burn out because we always carry along with us extra oil.
Kang hit the nail on the head. “Let’s wait for our reservoirs to fill…” Thanks Conrade Yap, for the awesome post!
Conrade on November 16, 2011 at 4:17 pm
Hi daisymarygoldr,
I really appreciate your insights. I especially like the burning bush allusion, burning but never really burned up. That is the Lord’s attribute. It is a great reminder that on our own strength we will run out of steam. On God’s strength, it is tapping onto the richest reservoir in the Universe where we will be filled.
c