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Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/8/2008 9:51:00 PM
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zheychua
Posts: 4
Joined: 8/8/2008
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Hello everyone, I'm sorry to break in but I just want to ask a few moments of your time to review our Christian website which is at http://balutpress.com/zhey.
Husband and I would love to hear from you. The reason why we are asking for a review is because Husband and I recently quit our jobs supposedly to open another online business, but along the way we just found ourselves getting bored about the supposed business and more zealous in our studies on the Word of God. Now, we are facing to make a major life altering decision which is whether or not we should leave our careers behind and focus on our ministries through the blog and bible studies. With the current state of the blog, do you think we should carry on? By leaving our jobs to focus on the blog, we will be stripped off of our financial resources, but as Chrisitians today, what would you say if I was infront of you right now?
Thanks! Any comment will be appreciated.
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/8/2008 10:24:44 PM
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hjemerson
Posts: 240
Joined: 3/4/2008
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This will be interseting to watch, How do you live off of blots etc on the internet? I feel if God has given you a way to make a living and serve Him as you do the jobs you have ,It may be I am all for following your calling but in our stage of life and in most you have to prepare for your futrue, maybe one work in a reg job as you start the minst. till it take off, I have found many time Christian become blind to "We going to work for God" and found out you have to plan in that work also. Make any sense?
We had a group of wonderful chrisian promise support etc as we moved ascross the country to work for them after here when we needed the support most was all talk no do. So Planning is what God has told us , He help those who help them self . Yet still have Faith to work for him . take steps to making a plan how to cover you life exprenses for at least 6-9 months. Living.Ins.etc. I will be waiting to see how othe answer. I try to go to you site but showed a error,
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/9/2008 4:15:50 AM
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DSmitty
Posts: 52
Joined: 7/2/2008
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Well first off, I tried to go to it and got an error 404 - not found.
The bottom line is what is God saying? You have to obey him. He will work miracles when we obey, regardless of the circumstance. My caution, however, is that you do not mistake the zealousness that you find from getting into God's Word (which can definitely be a wonderful thing, and it does ignite a passion, as it should) for God speaking. And I speak from experience, believe me. It's easy to get excited and in the place where you think, "Wouldn't it be great if God did this..." and you think "I could just see God doing something like that" - but is it what He's doing? That's what you have to know. I would urge you to set aside time to really seek Him on the subject, but do not make a decision until you know with every fiber of your being that God has spoken. Also, remember - the Scripture teaches that there is wisdom in the multitude of counsel.
My initial reaction is to ask if you could do both. But again, I would rather encourage you to do what God says - whatever that may be.
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/9/2008 6:09:40 AM
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zheychua
Posts: 4
Joined: 8/8/2008
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Oops, im sorry about the Error 404, we were updating the site a few hours ago. It's http://balutpress.com/zhey
Thank you for the replies, they all make sense and at this point my husband and I are looking into every option that we have. I will most definitely keep you all posted on our final decision and how things turned out. We will be away for the weekend for a special activity in church (our church is an hour away by bus) and we are hoping to come up with a final decision come Friday, if all things fall into place.
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/9/2008 1:12:27 PM
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MrsDC
Posts: 152
Joined: 8/17/2005
From: Sinaloa, Mexico
Status: offline
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Well, I'm getting an error 404 too. I've been learning HTML and working on building a couple of sites this past year. I really hate those little computer glitches.  I'll keep checking back.
Anyway, about your original question. How would I respond if we were sitting down to coffee and you said, "Friend, I believe that God is calling me to quit my job and live a life of total dependence on Him."
I would ask you some questions:
How much time have you been spending in prayer about it? Together with your spouse?
How many other people do you have praying for/with you?
In what ways have you heard God speaking to you about this?
You don't need to respond to these questions here if you don't want to. They are just to get you thinking.
Five years ago, we faced a similar situation. After more than a year of prayer and counseling with our church leadership and prayer partners, we finally made the "break".
Now, here we are -- full-time missionaries in Mexico living on about $400 per month. Sometimes this is a REALLY scarey position. In reality, our first year here was...abundant. Support poured in, we saw breakthrough after breakthrough in prayer and in provision. We were able to build a house and Dh was able to attend Bible college. Awesome. Almost to the day that we moved into this house, the faucet turned off, so to speak. For the past year and a half, we've been learning what it really means to live by faith and to live at the level of the people we serve. We thought we were living by faith before!!! 
I know though, that we truly counted the cost before we embarked on this grand adventure. What I'm trying to say is that you need to be sure of your calling and set some "landmarks" so that when the hard times of testing come (which they will), you'll be able to say to discouragement and doubt, "We know that we are right smack dab in the middle of God's will and we will not turn away." If you step out half-heartedly or unsecurely, the trials may overtake you.
Well, those would be my "words of wisdom". Hope they were worth the reading time!!!
Blessings!
-- Rebecca
_____________________________
Fancy signatures are highly overrated. Just click here and visit my blog. Please.
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/9/2008 2:06:59 PM
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GregandJenny
Posts: 616
Joined: 2/16/2006
From: Near Seattle Washington
Status: online
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Leaving jobs to focus on Ministry?
What about keeping jobs to focus on Ministry?
Hmmmm
_____________________________
It does not have to be well with my circumstance to be well with my soul!
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/10/2008 9:05:15 AM
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DSmitty
Posts: 52
Joined: 7/2/2008
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quote:
ORIGINAL: MrsDC
Well, I'm getting an error 404 too. I've been learning HTML and working on building a couple of sites this past year. I really hate those little computer glitches. I'll keep checking back.
Anyway, about your original question. How would I respond if we were sitting down to coffee and you said, "Friend, I believe that God is calling me to quit my job and live a life of total dependence on Him."
I would ask you some questions:
How much time have you been spending in prayer about it? Together with your spouse?
How many other people do you have praying for/with you?
In what ways have you heard God speaking to you about this?
You don't need to respond to these questions here if you don't want to. They are just to get you thinking.
Five years ago, we faced a similar situation. After more than a year of prayer and counseling with our church leadership and prayer partners, we finally made the "break".
Now, here we are -- full-time missionaries in Mexico living on about $400 per month. Sometimes this is a REALLY scarey position. In reality, our first year here was...abundant. Support poured in, we saw breakthrough after breakthrough in prayer and in provision. We were able to build a house and Dh was able to attend Bible college. Awesome. Almost to the day that we moved into this house, the faucet turned off, so to speak. For the past year and a half, we've been learning what it really means to live by faith and to live at the level of the people we serve. We thought we were living by faith before!!!
I know though, that we truly counted the cost before we embarked on this grand adventure. What I'm trying to say is that you need to be sure of your calling and set some "landmarks" so that when the hard times of testing come (which they will), you'll be able to say to discouragement and doubt, "We know that we are right smack dab in the middle of God's will and we will not turn away." If you step out half-heartedly or unsecurely, the trials may overtake you.
Well, those would be my "words of wisdom". Hope they were worth the reading time!!!
Blessings!
-- Rebecca
I apologize everyone if I'm breaking from the subject at hand...
Hey Rebecca... I'm really intrigued by your post. Before my wife and I were married I had done an internship in a small church and then went to work with Teen Challenge for a few years - but I had it in my heart to do missions. When my wife and I started dating, she knew that I had had that desire and she asked me about it and said, "If that's what you're going to do then I'm not the girl for you." But when she went with some kids on a short-term missions trip to Mexico, her heart really changed. Specifically, she started really having it in her heart to minister there.
We have been through some very turbulent times, but this is something that always comes back up from time to time. I know from previous experience that I was the most fulfilled (not necessarily the least stressed, but the most fulfilled) when I was in ministry.
How did you become missionaries to Mexico? Are you there with a particular group? Were you sent out by a certain denomination? We don't have to talk about this here, but PM me... I would like to know more. Thanks!
And thanks everyone else for bearing with my diversion.
-David
_____________________________
Men are God's methods. And while men are looking for better methods, God is looking for better men. -AW Tozer
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/11/2008 6:51:13 AM
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RJR_fan
Posts: 716
Joined: 4/12/2005
From: RTP, in sunny NC USA
Status: offline
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quote:
By leaving our jobs to focus on the blog, we will be stripped off of our financial resources, but as Christians today, what would you say if I was in front of you right now?
That you need to think long and hard, to make sure that your thinking hasn't been warped by the subtle gnosticism in American pietism that denigrates real life and promotes some variety of "spiritual" endeavor as superior to "worldly" work.
Been there, done that, got the tee shirt -- and scars that still itch decades later.
As a newly "born-again" Christian, I lapped up those testimony books wherein folks who were really serious about serving God quit what they were doing and left their nets to follow Jesus. You would be aghast to find out how many people who thought they'd be "living by faith" end up "subsisting on charity." We're all called to some form of Christian witness. Most of us are also called to perform tangible service to God and man, in the form of our regular jobs. When we try to put our primary efforts into our secondary calling, our lives are warped, and our productivity nose-dives.[1] Yes, it's possible to walk on your hands -- but not very efficient! Frequently, people who pursue this "higher way" end up in high-demand communities, trading unpaid labor for a sense of fulfilling exciting missions.[2]
In many parts of the world, your work and your family give you credibility. Someone who drops in from out of nowhere, with no visible means of support, no obvious connections to extended family life, and doing nothing useful, is (justifiably) viewed with suspicion. "Hello. I'm from the United States. And I'm here to 'help' you." They've heard that line before -- from the "birth control" technicians who mutilated (sterilized) their young woman, for example.
A man I know and respect spent 14 years on the field as an engineer in a very useful branch of the profession, in order to establish his credibility.[3] English teachers are welcome in China, and discrete after-hours sessions that use the Bible as a textbook are politely ignored by the officials -- and by most of the students, who already had their social networks in place long before the American girl showed up to try and push her way in![4]
One final rant. Our denomination has a ruthlessly efficient screening process in place for people who feel called to "full-time Christian service." They need to raise their support. Someone who volunteers for leading worship, for example, may enjoy it so much that he wants to do it full-time. At which point, he steps OUT of the ministry, sits down, and shuts up, until he's "raised enough support" to pay his own way. I was the target of such a sales pitch one day over lunch -- and it was a slickly professional sales job, complete with a "closer" -- "We both can see how important this kind of ministry is. Could I count on you for $X per month? Well, how about $Y?"[5]
In the words of our church's founding pastor, "There's no romance without finance."
Somebody's got to do something useful to pay the bills -- and why, exactly, are you convinced that that somebody should be somebody else?
[1] The next time you hear Don MacLean's haunting ballad Starry, Starry Night, remember -- Vincent Van Gogh would probably have retained both ears, and lived decades longer, had he known that God was better glorified by a magnificent painter than He was by a lousy preacher.
[2] Often, people who leave such intense and passionate communities have real trouble adapting to the workaday world. For months, or years, they've seen themselves as doing something far more important than "worldly" work -- and their work ethic has been crippled. It can take years to repair that damage, speaking from experience ...
[3] "Jack" was told by the first missions agency he approached that he was "too old" to master the language and culture that was the springboard for the very isolated target population on his heart. He found another agency, and had many fruitful years of outreach, with a family that included home-school kids.
[4] Such has been the experience of my son's old girlfriend, anyhow!
[5] If you can't do salesmanship, find another occupation. This system requires aspirants to demonstrate, in cold, hard, cash, that they have sufficient "favor with God and man" to make a go of it in full-time vocational ministry. On the one hand, this system generates many people who can pursue opportunities around the world as they open up. Our church was planting daughter churches in the former Soviet bloc soon after the wall came down. OTOH, though, the system is biased towards charming, charismatic, and somewhat ruthless folks.
< Message edited by RJR_fan -- 8/11/2008 6:59:44 AM >
_____________________________
The future has never been shaped by majorities but rather by dedicated minorities. And free men do not wait for the future; they create it. RJR
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OUCH! - 8/15/2008 1:35:35 AM
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FROGkissin
Posts: 154
Joined: 6/1/2008
From: Sutherlin, Oregon, USA
Status: offline
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I am so sorry, RJR_fan, that 'the system' has chewed you up and spit you out like that!
Not at all what our Lord intended--
For zheychua--
All through the Bible, we have stories about people who served God. Some were asked to leave everything to follow God's call on their lives. Many others, however, served God wholeheartedly while excelling in their secular professions. Have you ever heard the term "tent maker ministry"? This term came from the Apostle Paul whose story is in the book of Acts. This format for serving the Lord has many benefits.
I love short responses, so I'll stop here!
Let me know if you want more.
_____________________________
"Greet one another with a holy kiss."
2 Cor. 13:12
~~~
Check out my ministry:
http://www.womenspeakers.com/speakers/view.php?userid=582
Encore! Life & Drama
http://encore.christianblogsites.com/blog/
Check out my 'FROG blog' in Blog
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RE: OUCH! - 8/15/2008 2:30:06 AM
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Emily9288
Posts: 2
Joined: 8/15/2008
Status: offline
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Well, I have a friend that turned down a professional baseball offer to work in a ministry in Alabama. His life has been blessed beyond belief!
check it: http://www.thebasementonline.com
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/15/2008 7:06:45 PM
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zheychua
Posts: 4
Joined: 8/8/2008
Status: offline
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Thank you, everyone, for your responses, especially those who offered encouraging words and words of reflection.
Dear hubby and I decided to continue with ministry, full time, making it a priority over and above everything else. On the side we will also be working part time to support our needs and the ministry. After all, we have 24 hours a day, we can work 4 hours daily as regular part timers and the rest, devote it to ministry.
We are so happy we finally arrived at this decision. But then again, as we always say, we really do not know where God wants to lead us but definitely, wherever that is, we will follow.
---
To those who commented about the bad English on the blog and to the one who said that there is nothing enthralling or about it, thanks, too. You just gave us more reason to continue with the blog... It's not the English or the visuals that we are promoting on the site, but the Gospel. More than anything else, it is what we want to jump out from the pages of the site, not our English or anything else. We believe that everything written on the blog can be understood perfectly clear and it is the message that is what's more important. Again, Gospel. Not some prosperity or fake gospel, but the Gospel which is the True Word of God.
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/16/2008 12:40:35 PM
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RJR_fan
Posts: 716
Joined: 4/12/2005
From: RTP, in sunny NC USA
Status: offline
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quote:
Dear hubby and I decided to continue with ministry, full time, making it a priority over and above everything else.
Careful what you wish for -- you might get it. Bob Pierce thought he had a deal with God -- he'd look after God's little orphaned children all around the world, and God would look after his kids. Didn't work that way -- his marriage ended, and his oldest child, like Billy Sunday's, died by her own hand.
We are all shaped by our conditioning. English missionaries used to consider it appropriate to send their kids off to boarding school. One evidence cited of Hudson Taylor's "heroic" commitment to his missionary work was his willingness to let his affectionate five year old son die of separation anxiety, rather than keep the kid underfoot and in the way of "the mission."
I quit donating to the Salvation Army when they ordered their staff to subordinate/sacrifice their children to "the ministry."
If you are a woman, your biological clock is going "tick, tick, tick." Too many ladies pursue professional goals and realize, only when it's too late, that the children they'd dreamed of having will never come.
Nothing, after God, is as important as one's own family.
One more example: the medieval Catholic church mandated clerical celibacy in order to get a lifetime's worth of undistracted service out of each priest. The Jews took the opposite approach. If a young scholar demonstrated gifts that equipped him to serve the community as a rabbi, they would match him up with the best possible woman -- and even take up a collection to fund her dowry, if necessary -- then encourage the pair to have lots of kids. Which team had the better vision for the long run?
You see, you can make sacrifices in terms of immediate impact, in order to leverage your ministry over the next few generations. You can deny yourself immediate gratification today, then rejoice in the faith of believing grandkids.
Or, you can eat your seed corn, cash in tomorrow for today -- and end up barren, lonely, and filled with regrets.
_____________________________
The future has never been shaped by majorities but rather by dedicated minorities. And free men do not wait for the future; they create it. RJR
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RE: Leavign Jobs to focus on ministry. What do you think? - 8/16/2008 8:25:46 PM
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Dakotasunbeam
Posts: 985
Joined: 6/2/2005
From: Midwest USA
Status: offline
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I agree with frogkissin,
God calls some to give up all--including their lives AND family. Your job is to determine if that is indeed what God is calling YOU and your spouse to do. God does not always call us to a life of ease, nor convenience. But He promises to provide us with what we need.
My best advice would be to pray diligently to know the will of God. Remember, EVERYDAY is ministry. I do not believe in the popular man-made idea that some christian men/women are called by God into ministry. The truth is that EVERY Christian is called into ministry. In fact, missions are just as important in the US and the UK as they are in third world countries like Mexico and Somalia. Sometimes the ripes mission field is your own backyard or city.
Bless you. But seek the Lord on this.
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