Crusaders Ministries Blog

“And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias;…” – Acts 9:10

Ananias was a disciple according to the verse, meaning he had made a decision to follow the Lord and serve Him. He had made that choice to do His work. But now that the Lord was sending Him, he had nearly denied that choice because he saw obstacles in the way; because around him there seemed to be a tangible reason why he couldn’t. He had nearly hindered Paul from receiving His sight.

How many of us are refusing to engage in our ministry – though we might have responded to it – and do not realize we are hindering many lives from experiencing the power of God according to God’s plan? Most of us have made a choice to be a disciple of the Lord. We have decided to work for the Lord. No one forced us to serve Him; no one forced us to substitute working in our various jobs for the mandate of God upon our lives. We weighed and saw that the best for us was to do God’s work. Yet, when the Lord wants us to do that work we find lots of excuses not to. Why will we make void that choice we’ve made? Why will we waste our time then? Why will we lay judgment on ourselves for not doing what the Lord instructs us to do when that is the reason we left everything for Him? Why will we let our good choices turn to be sour for us when it is supposed to bless us? If we are just sitting on our comfortable behinds and not responding to the daily instructions of the Lord, we are not different from those who have not responded to their calling at all.

Your frustration is not enough excuse not to preach to somebody today which might grant him salvation! You know the Lord is telling you day in and out to do that marriage conference, but you are complaining and murmuring in your heart – you don’t have money, your bills are not paid so you are frustrated, your kids can’t even get enough from you for school, and we see it is outrageous to use the little money we have on us to do that conference! But do you know what the enemy is doing to a certain couple, messing their marriage up? Perhaps one of them is even about to divorce or commit murder or suicide and God wants to intervene through you!

Do you know how that book God has been telling you to write or that song to sing can change somebody’s life today who is about to go to hell? Do you know the comfort and deliverance that that one sentence of inspirational quote God has been telling you to write could do to somebody this very minute? Perhaps somebody is praying all his heart out for that Word from God and God only wants to use you! Yet, you are allowing your frustration, fears, depression and discouragement get in the way of somebody’s blessings!

Just as Mordecai told Esther (Esther 4:13-14), if you refuse to be used by God, He will use somebody else, but then you will perish. Yet, assuredly, there is a reward waiting for you after you make yourself available for God to use you. (Matt 10:42; 16:27; Luke 6:35; 1Corin 3:8; Col 3:24; 1Tim 5:18)

You’ve made a decision to go all out for the Lord. If so, then everything about you is to serve God and man. You don’t count! It would have been better if we denounced that decision and did what we desire than to be unavailable when the Lord needs us. We hide behind lots of excuses. Yes, they might seem tangible and so real, but what does the Lord says? Ananias depended on the saying of man and the evidence of the physical which was tangible, yet the Lord was telling him something that didn’t seem to have any bearing with the physically tangible. Yes, really Paul was more than a tyrant in persecuting the church and in human wisdom Ananias should be hiding from him. Yet, the Lord’s word emphasized the direct opposite of what Ananias would humanly do – according to the Lord, he was not only close by Paul, but was putting his hand on him to heal him. There are tangible circumstances around you that seem to make what the Lord wants you to do impossible, but then will you consider the physically impossible or the spiritually possible that comes from the Lord?

The Lord took Ananias’ fears away by telling him what His intentions were as regarding Paul. Sometimes when He sends us, we may not always get the Lord to explain to us what He is up to in order to take away our fears, yet, we must not object but must trust Him and take that step of faith!

How many souls are perishing emotionally, physically, socially, financially and spiritually because you are not writing those books or putting up those conferences or giving out that money/resources to that brother? How many are perishing by going to hell because you are not preaching that word or refusing to share those encouraging words even as the Lord has prompted you to? How many souls are boxed in and not in the place God has ordained for them just because you are refusing to utilize your talents and gifts?

What has the Lord told us to do? Let’s get back to our prophecies, to the dreams, imaginations, visions and trance we testified to. We were supposed to do some of the things long time ago; a week, month, year or two ago, but we are still stagnant because we are giving excuses. Do you know the number of people who have perished within those two weeks or a year or five or ten years in which you’ve refused to obey the instruction of God? How many more must perish?!

Ministry isn’t for you, but the people God wants to reach out to. Somebody somewhere is praying right now, that is why the Lord says write that quote. Somebody has been praying to make his marriage work that is why you received that prophecy to put up that marriage conference!

“And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.” – 2Corinthians 5:18-20

Just as the Lord did for us, we enter into ministry for the Lord to do so to others through us. Sometimes, we are apt to think that God wants us to engage in ministry (write those books, put up those conferences, preach His Word, etc) solely that He’ll bless and prosper us (give us financial abundance, make us meet prominent people, give us international platforms, etc). Yes, the Lord does use ministry to bless us as well, but don’t forget first and foremost, it is for somebody out there to be blessed just as somebody engaged in the errand of the Lord and you were blessed!

Jesus didn’t come to die so that He will be sitting at the right hand of God and His name elevated above any other name. He suffered and died so that He will save you and me. He came, and made Himself available for God to use to reconcile the world unto Himself (God). It was us first in mind! It was after He did as He was sent that God rewarded Him!

“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” – Philippians 2:5-11

So, can I bold to say if you’ve not obeyed the instruction of God enough to bless others, your reward will not come? If you do not engage in the responsibilities of your ministry, there will be no reward for you. Sometimes, we think we can get away with the responsibilities and yet be rewarded. We claim the blessings but don’t want to do the work. It doesn’t work that way.

It was after Job had prayed for his friends yet they flayed him, that God rewarded him with double of the possessions he had lost (Job 42:10). He could have a tangible reason not to pray for them as God had instructed – they criticized him bitterly! Yet, he might have known every instruction or errand of God comes with it a reward after you obey regardless of the situation you find yourself in! Job had to first bring to his friends forgiveness, refreshing of soul, and a new relationship between God and them before he would be rewarded. He first had to be a blessing to them before he would be blessed or rewarded!

Brethren, let us consider our choice and decision again to be a disciple of the Lord and to serve Him with all we’ve got! Let’s put off the carnality and the many excuses so that we can truly be vessels of honor for God to use to bless others. Then after that, our own reward will follow.

“Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;” – Philippians 2:12-15

BY: LILLY MORGAN