For just a moment think about all the seminars, conferences, and other youth pastors you meet…all were many times based on making their ministry more prominent. I have been caught up in this as well. I began to believe that in my service to Christ, my ministry must become more prominent. My ministry had to be on a national level of prominence and for me to be recognized for both the ministry and I to be significant. I thought people should want to hear me and what I have to say, because God has blessed my ministry.
What I have found is that no matter how small or unseen my ministry is that it is significant. Because it is significant to the students, to the churches, to the youth leaders, to the families, to the community, and most important to the service of Christ! I am to serve Christ in whatever capacity He deems necessary and important, while doing the very best that I can for Him. Anything other than this is arrogant and prideful because it is not thinking of those that God has given to me to minister. While maybe my ministry may not be as the world terms prominent, I believe that is significant. Why because it is not the quantity that matters but the quality. For if your ministry is developing quality fruit it will bear more fruit.
I am not interested in just bearing quality fruit but in bearing fruit trees. We are not in the ministry to develop apples, but to plant apple trees! If every ministry was more concerned and consumed by the concept of developing orchards that bear good fruit the significance of that ministry would be astronomical. Yet we seem to be enthralled with the idea of having a prominent ministry that everyone can see.
If you are a young youth leader out there and you want to make a difference. I would challenge you to plan, prepare, and put forth your best effort to plant orchards of tress that are bearing good fruit and if God so desires then your ministry will be prominent and thanks be to God who blesses us. But the one thing that I know about ministry and that is whether your ministry is prominent or not is totally unimportant. What is vitally important is that our ministries be significant and bear fruit.
44 "For each tree is known by its own fruit. Luke 6:44 (NASB)