How to Bounce Back from Losing your Ministry - Chapter 2 - Be Productive

How to Bounce Back from Losing Your Ministry

Chapter Two

Be Productive

A productive person is an asset to any company. You don’t have to be a CEO to be a leader; but by your leadership you can become a CEO. Fruitfulness brings a fragrance to life. It is essential in the life of any would-be achiever. A fruitful person is an asset anywhere. Where ever they go they produce good things. Others want to be around them. They have life and energy. They are blessed! Put them in a bad situation and they will turn it around; they have the ability to turn failure into success. They are like bubbles – they make a drink ‘fizzy’ and always land on top! In the Bible, Isaac was one such person. Despite being in a famine in the land of Gerar, God blessed him. He wanted to move to Egypt but God told him to stay where he was and he would be blessed.

“Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I give all these lands, and I will perform the oath which I swore to you father Abraham; And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands: and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 26:3;4

God’s goal is for you to be blessed and fruitful. After the initial change that hits our lives suddenly has worn off, we can find ourselves trying to ‘escape’ and not face it. We can temporarily retreat into to what is familiar to try to get back some sense of control. But if you retreat too much you may never recover. Trials cause you to withdraw. It’s like trying to find a ‘calm’, a soothing spot in a crisis and this is alright for a short time. However, if you withdraw for too long you will wither away. The result is unfruitfulness. If you are called to serve God, He has put something in you for the body of Christ and it is there to be used. It is a gift God has given to you for His body. Life is for living. One of life’s little secrets is that it is from giving out that you receive back. When you stop giving out you stop receiving, and it sets up a vicious circle. We can make the choice to start to give out. To break the cycle, dig within yourself for the blessing.

“And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them up afier the death of Abraham.” Genesis 26:18

The wells themselves are symbolic of blessing and reflect both the struggle and the triumph to receive it. No matter where Isaac dug the wells and no matter how often the Philistines stopped them up, he re-opened them.

Stress, struggles and trials will block the well of blessing in your life and eventually stop it up until no blessing flows. When God said, ‘dig again the wells Abraham’, Isaac had a few issues to contend with at the time. However, at the end of the chapter he proclaimed that God had made room for him and caused him to be fruitful in the land.

I found myself in a position where I had to again dig the wells in my own life and find the blessing within. The blessing was there; it just had to be re-opened.

Don’t change your position

When circumstances ‘crowd’ us in and we feel overwhelmed, the natural ‘fight or flight’ instinct kicks in. But I learnt very early in my marriage that you can’t escape problems. My husband Peter would tell me that going to another place would not change things. This was in response to my howls of, “I need to get away!” No matter what problem you face, it will follow you or will be waiting for you when you come back! Better to deal with it then and there! Escapism is not an option for dealing with issues.

God can bless you where you are! The blessing of God is in you. You take it where ever you go. The first thing God told Isaac to do was not to move from the land of famine but to stay in Gerar. “Don’t go down to Egypt,” was the command. The natural inclination would be to go to where you perceived the blessing to be; in this case Egypt. But God said, ‘no’. Don’t expect the blessing to be in something outside of yourself. It may matter to you that you are in a land of famine; you may feel discomforted, and that it will go on forever; but God speaks words of comfort and says, ‘stay put. I’ll bless you there.’ We question, ‘how?’ The land you are in is not the problem.

Circumstances will change once you change what you are thinking. You could move to a more “blessed” country, but if you take the same kind of thinking with you, you will find yourself in the same cycle. God says, “I can bless you where ever you are, whatever circumstance you are in, because I have put the blessing in you.”

“When in doubt, don’t” Sometimes when things get difficult there is a strong desire to uproot and change positions. But very often God wants you to stay put and find the blessing where you are. The blessing of God is in you. It will come forth despite even the most adverse circumstances, if you believe it. The Bible proves it over and over again, and throughout history people prove it over and over again. Smart people look for creative ways to grow where they are, and usually only ever make drastic moves as a very last resort. (There are some circumstances out of which you must move; for example if your life is in danger or that of your family) However I am not talking about life threatening circumstances here. Under those circumstances you must seek professional help. I am talking more on daily living and daily choices. These people are flexible enough to make changes and adapt. You can often find the solution where you are; you don’t have to go somewhere else to find it.

“Necessity is the mother of invention. “ Anonymous

Some of the greatest inventions of the world were developed in the midst of adversity. This saying does not have its beginnings in prosperous surrounds. It came out of a time of history when things were scarce and difficult to find. New things were invented out of sheer necessity. And by accident great inventions were born.

Do something constructive

“Then Isaac sowed in that land’, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him. The man began to prosper.”

Genesis 26:12;13

Despite there being a famine in the land Isaac starts to sow. He does something positive and constructive. He didn’t languish in his trouble but he began to sow. You may be facing difficulties right now as you read this book, despite the difficulties, do something! Anything! Break the paralysis and get moving. Isaac became so blessed and prosperous that he was the envy of all his neighbours. But to be blessed you have to do something first.

If you drive, you would know that you can’t move a car in the direction you want it to go unless you first start the engine! You must then put it in gear so you can direct its movements. You could sit in a car all day wishing it to move but it won’t until you do something first. God cannot direct you until you do something first. So often people bemoan their circumstances and wish for change. It’s hard to break the inertia and move forward when you are in your own famine, but it is the only way God can help you. God wants to intervene in your circumstances, but He’s waiting for you to move. Isaac was in the land of famine but he still did something! When he began to sow, God blessed his effort. No effort, no blessing. God needs your co-operation to bless you. Don’t sit at home hoping your circumstances will change. Make the change happen!

It’s a principle in life that you must start to do something first before you can ask God to bless your work. The Bible is plain: if a man does not work, neither let him eat! I know Christians who pray for God to feed them, but don’t want to lift a finger to help themselves.

Integrity in relationships

One reason why the blessing of God will not flow is a lack of integrity or truthfulness in relationships with others. Isaac was dwelling in the land but he had a secret. Isaac did not reveal to King Abimilech that his wife was indeed his wife. He had let the king believe she was his sister. He was afraid. It was only after Isaac was honest with the king that he sowed in the land and became prosperous.

Isaac was probably sowing in the land before he told the king about his wife. I don’t believe that it’s by accident that the Bible states he was blessed one hundred fold in the same year, until after he revealed this truth to the king. Honesty is the best policy. Maybe he was sowing and grumbling. “I’ve done all this sowing, and nothing, year after year.” He could have sung that song, “what about me, it isn’t fair”! Although God wanted to bless him, He couldn’t, and that was in part, because of his dishonesty. He was afraid of what would happen if they knew about his wife. Just imagine what would have happened if Isaac talked to himself this way as he was trying to live through a drought. “Life’s not fair.” I can just hear him, the great patriarch of the Bible down on his luck. But he doesn’t. He hears God tell him,”dwell in this land and I will be with you and bless you.” Fear is the opposite of faith. He had no faith. We must have faith for the blessing to come.

The placement of certain things in the Bible reveal great truths. It was not by accident that Isaac started prospering after he had revealed the truth to the king. It takes courage to be honest; but courageous people are blessed people. Being secretive, fearful and withholding about certain things in your life will affect your relationships with others. It will “clog” the blessing of God. Don’t keep secrets. Be open, honest and courageous then the blessing will come.

Success brings its own challenges

When you start a new plan of action, don’t be surprised if trouble breaks out. It is part of moving to a new level.

Isaac moves away from the Philistines and settles near the wells of his father Abraham. As the story goes, Isaac’s servants dug a well and found a well of running water, but the herdsmen from Gerar and the herdsmen of Isaac quarreled about whose water it was. So Isaac moved and dug another well. However, quarreling broke out over that one also.

The Philistines represents the flesh. The flesh is a New Testament term Paul used to describe the old sinful nature. The flesh always creates trouble for us. It is our responsibility to keep the flesh under subjection to the Spirit of God. Our ‘flesh’ is trouble; we become impatient, get angry and say things we later regret, are lazy and on we could go. It doesn’t matter what aspect of the fleshly nature arises because the results are the same – strife. Just like the quarreling herdsmen, strife begat more strife. God says, “clean up your own mess! I’ve done all I’m going to do through My Son’s death on the Cross. You now have to crucify your flesh. That’s your job, and you have to do it”. God expects us to sort out strife. These are sins of the flesh and we deal with sin through repentance and confession.

The name of each well held meaning. The wells themselves were symbolic of divine blessing, but the first two wells were marred with disputes, contentions, hatred and opposition. The name of the third well, “Rehoboth” means “now the Lord has made room for us and we shall be fruitful in the land.”

Difficulties arose as soon as Isaac decided to dig the wells again and open them up. The word dig means “to seek out”. Digging requires effort. Nothing in God which is worth having ever comes without someone having to pay a price. Each generation has to seek the blessing for themselves. Dig your own well. You are responsible for finding room for yourself so you can be fruitful. If you dig the well, you will find the water. The blessing is there for you if you seek for it. It just takes effort and patience.

God’s blessing is on the seed of Abraham. Isaac was an heir to the blessing. The Bible says you are heirs to the blessing by faith. Abraham was the father of faith. By the obedience of one man Christ, the blessing came to His descendants. (Romans 4:13

In the digging of your well, the blessing may be delayed but it will come eventually. No matter how much opposition may come to thwart the blessing, it will come, and it will thrive. It can do nothing else. It is destined to do what it will do. Don’t become disillusioned if there is a delay; even if things get worse. Sometimes things get worse before they get better. We can make such quick assumptions about life and in so doing, bring God down to our level of experience. If your experience doesn’t match God’s Word, don’t bring God down to your level. Always bring your experience up to the Word of God. God is always true, even if our experience doesn’t bear that out. Hebrew 11 tells us that “some having died in faith.” They saw the promise afar off, but weren’t partakers of it. They are in the hall of faith ‘greats’.

Through faith and patience we inherit the promises. (Hebrews 10:23)

Have you ever tried to hold a bubble under water? It’s impossible. Bubbles rise to the surface whether you want them to or not. You can’t hold them down. Some people have irrepressible spirits like that. No matter what you throw at them they bounce back up. The blessing is in you. It is yours. Whatever the world tries to throw at you be irrepressible like that bubble.

God is the source of all blessing. In disappointment, don’t walk away from the Source of your blessing. Seek Him!

Positioned to received

It’s one thing to say you are blessed, but do you “feel” blessed? You must learn to position yourself for the blessing to flow to you and through you.

Have you ever watched a game of football or a game of cricket? When a footballer gets ready to pass the ball, the other player must be in position. If he isn’t he will fail to catch the ball when it is passed to him. It is the same with cricket. When the ball is struck high in the air, the fielder must position himself under the ball to get a catch. When he catches it the batsman is out. The key here is positioning.

God is passing His blessing onto you. You must get into position to receive it. One of the things I do to receive the blessing, starts when I go to prayer. During my morning devotion, I start to pray Scriptures about the blessing. After I have done that for a time, I let my imagination get “under” the blessing and I imagine myself receiving the blessing. I picture myself taking hold of the blessing. I raise my hands, and see blessings coming down to me from my heavenly Father. So many blessings! Things I need, that I’ve asked for in prayer. Then I get so full! I have to ask God to expand me, because I need more room to receive! It’s like having a full house, and you’ve got to move the furniture around to make more room! When I’ve made more room, I receive more blessings, bigger blessings. I imagine receiving things that are huge! How big can you believe?

I imagine being overtaken with the b1essings from Deuteronomy 28. Just imagine walking along a path with all these blessings chasing you, trying to catch up and overtake you. They tap you on the shoulder and say, “we are here for you!” “we want to bless you!” Oh, wow! Let your soul absorb that feeling! How does your soul feel when it is blessed like that?

Prayer is an exciting adventure and when you wait upon Him, and let Him fill you like this you feel so blessed. You might be saying, “she’s got a wild imagination!” You’re right! And I love it! It makes prayer exciting. I am a co-worker with God. He wants to bless me and I want to receive it! Train your soul to receive the blessing.

Have you ever seen someone try to give a compliment or a gift to another person? If the person receiving the compliment or gift doesn’t know how to receive it, they will make excuses, be embarrassed, and worst of all, fail to receive the compliment or gift at all! You must train yourself to receive a compliment or gift gracefully. Christians can be like that with God. Accept the blessing gracefully with a heart full of thanksgiving to Him. God is happy to give good things to you.

Read Chapter Three “A Lion in a Pit on a Snowy Day” coming in the next few days.

If you would like more of Peter and Lindsay Earle’s teaching go to www.pastoralministrytraining.com