Who Cares?

Does Jesus care? I know He cares. One of the most crucial aspects of ministry is caring for people. As a minister of the Gospel and to the church, we will encounter people in all of life’s transitions. Bringing the peace of God to people whose lives may be in pieces is an important way of ministering to those and sharing God’s love. There are times when we may find ourselves in a position to minister in a way that is unique and needed.

The nature of humanity, when things go wrong, is to ask, “Why?” The temptation for ministers is to attempt to come up with the answer to this question as well as a flood of others that come about. It is often simply the ministry of presence, support and encouragement that is most meaningful in times of need. We are called to rejoice together, grieve together, mourn together and weep together. Most of the time, people aren’t looking for the perfect word. A time will come later for making sense of things and for Theological discovery. Often, we should simply see a need and address it. The knowledge that the people of God are there to offer that support goes a long way. The overflow of love that abounds when we are doing God’s work for God’s children in times of need is a tool more powerful than we could ever imagine.

Tending the flock and keeping up with the health and well being of God’s children is a daunting task. It would be very easy to become wrapped up in helping others. After all, it is generally a love for people and a desire to help that calls us to ministry in the first place. We must not forget to tend to the flock that lives in our homes. We cannot cultivate and repair holy marriages if we have not done so with our own. We cannot mend family relations if we have refused to maintain our own. We must be focused on what God has entrusted to us in our immediate families as a launching point to addressing what God has entrusted to us in our church families.