Long-delayed dream of ministering realized
June 27th, 2008 by annepaulSource: Fort Wayne Journal Gazette (Original Article)
God is here. I am sensing the presence of God all around me, and I see the powerful results of God’s grace.
What I have discovered is that right now at this juncture of my journey, my dreams have come true. What I have dreamed of is here – finally here. Wow! For me that is huge.
I remember my first inkling that I was destined for pastoral leadership, when one day while giving my testimony of God’s saving grace in my life, the power of the spirit of God moved through me in a way I had not experienced before.
People responded in demonstrative ways. That day, a good number of folks gave their lives to Christ. Afterward, a wise man spoke to me and said, “You’re gonna preach, sing and teach, girl. God has a plan to use you to build the kingdom!” I responded, “Really?”
Unlike some women, I had several examples of female pastors as mentors, so today I realize that my struggle with seeing myself in that role had more to do with me being attached to my past than realizing and embracing my future.
It was more comfortable to see myself as an inspirational speaker than it was to assume the responsibility of a call to pastoral ministries. After reading the account of Gideon’s life in the book of Judges, I became keenly aware that I needed to begin to see myself as God sees me.
Unlike Gideon, I was not in a drab spiritual condition, yet I was like him in that I was hearing from God and like many others asking myself the age old question, “Am I hearing God, or is it me?” My question developed into, “If it’s you, God, give me a sign.”
God was showing me amazing possibilities because of the miraculous grace and healing provided me in Christ. I just couldn’t imagine why God would want to use someone who had made a plethora of mistakes, mishaps, and the like. Surely he would want someone better than me.
What I BLUES CLUES dvd learned is that when God saves, …continue reading