Allen Hunt used to be the pastor of a mega church but eventually found the truth of the Catholic Church. Over 20 years God planted seeds in his heart that led him home to the Church where he found several “hidden treasures” in the Church. These treasures are not just the fact that the Catholic Church feeds, clothes, and aids more people than any other organization in the world. Allen used to be the pastor of the third largest mega church in the country, in which 30-40% of its members happen to be ex-Catholics. When he finished college, he went to get his doctorate at Yale and became friends with a Dominican priest who invited him to a cloistered monastery. When visiting he was asked why he was not a member of the Church. Allen’s response was that the Eucharist was something he believed to be symbolic. The cloistered nun pointed him to the Gospels at the Last Supper and to John 6. This was the first seed of Allen becoming Catholic. Later, he learned that the early Christians were willing to be martyred, to die, because they believed that the Eucharist was the body and blood of Jesus.

Allen started going to the Catholic Church on the 4 Sunday’s he had off per year. He went there because he knew what he was going to get – it is exactly the same no matter what state or country you are in. It all focuses on the altar, the centerpiece of worship. It’s not about the sermons and music; it’s about the altar and the Eucharist where Jesus feeds us. You can have the same body and blood of Christ wherever you go. For the first 1,100 years of Christianity, there is not a single piece of evidence anywhere of anyone ever suggesting the Church was wrong in its interpretation of the Eucharist.

In the Eucharist, Jesus puts Himself into us in the most intimate way. We are the people of the Eucharist. We either cooperate with the grace of God or we block the grace of God. When we receive Communion, we ask God to fill us with His grace. Always remember who you are – we are the people of the Eucharist, the body, blood, soul, and divinity of our King, Jesus Christ. In Communion, we are His and He is ours.

Ok, I’ll give you that. But if you have a desire to grow spiritually then attending church is conditional and should also be your desire, and is encouraged throughout scripture. God instituted local churches to help Christians grow spiritually. There you will have fellowship with other believers-including opportunities to serve and encourage them. You will receive “training and righteousness” as God’s word is preached and taught in your local church. As you mature spiritually God will reveal His purpose for your life.

Hebrews 10:24-25 encourages us to seek out fellowship through the church. After all this is where the family of God congregates. “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” NIV

“I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD” Psalm 122:1 KJV

Let’s study this verse in two parts.

· “I WAS GLAD”:

David was excited about going to church. I teach a Sunday school class on Sunday morning and as soon as I get up I find myself thinking of what is ahead of me when I get there. I put on my special praise CD, crank it up a little, and sing along listening closely to the words. Immediately the Holy Spirit begins to minister to me as I put on in my best clothes. Sometimes I can barely contain myself as I arrive at Church.

There are three things I look forward to when I get there.

FIRST: I look forward to the fellowship both before and after church. In my church we actually laugh and have fun. The backslapping, handshakes, laughing, hugs, sharing of events of the week, and the tiny children we have to holler at to quit running in church. And of course the little ones that approaches ‘the candy man” with their hands stretched out. And sometimes I’m blessed by a brother or sister by a special confidential prayer request.

SECOND: Praise service. What a joy it is to sing our songs of praise. To listen to the words as we sing them to the Lord. Lifting Him up. Acknowledging His power and grace. As He begins to receive our praise, we can feel His joy through the presence of the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit begins to prepare us for the hearing of God’s Word.

THIRD: The hearing of God’s word. My goal as a Christian is to grow spiritually and to take on the character of Christ. As we gain knowledge from the Word of God we give the Holy Spirit the tools He needs to grow our spiritual fruits. These fruits described in Galatians 5:22,23 reveals the character of Christ. “: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self- control”. Though I study my bible daily, I always go to church in anticipation that God will reveal something to me through the preaching that I would not have received through my individual studies. We all want to know God’s purpose for our lives. We can only know God’s will through His word.

· “LET US GO INTO THE HOUSE OF THE LORD”

The Acts church as described in Acts 2:42-47 was made up of Baby Christians. They studied and applied the word daily. They encouraged and provided for each others needs. They shared the Word of God in their community. They were looked up to because of the good works and needs they provided to the lost. And because of their good deeds new people came to the church daily and were saved.

THE CHURCH – THE BODY OF CHRIST — God’s purpose for every Christian is to bring others to Christ. The church is the training ground that provides the tools and knowledge to fulfill that purpose. Christ is the head, and the church is the body. The body of church members provides the mouth, eyes, ears, feet and hands directed through the Holy Spirit to bring others to Christ.

Ephesians 4:11-15 reveals that God gives spiritual and physical gifts to certain people in the church to become pastors, teachers and fill other leadership roles so that they may build up the rest of the body, advising and teaching them to not believe in wrong doctrine just because they sound true, but will learn to believe and apply what is taught in the true word of God.

Ephesians 4:15-16 teaches that the body of Christ, under His direction is made up of many parts that must fit together. Each part doing it’s own special work, helping the other parts to grow so that the whole body is healthy. It s critical that the members unify in one accord for the purpose of bringing others into the church and to Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:14-20 explains “Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.” NIV

WE MUST TREAT THOSE THAT DO THE “MEANIAL JOBS” HONORABLY –1 Corinthians 12:23-25 “and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.” NIV

It is absolutely conditional that Christians attend church to receive the “training and righteousness” that will equip them, and lead them to the fulfilling of God’s purpose in their life which always leads to bringing others to Christ.

WE ARE THE BRIDGE TO CHURCH — We often don’t realize that some of the best gifts that God has given us, are the things we love to do the most. We often think of those gifts as something God has blessed us with, to bring us joy and pleasure to our lives. While this is true, those gifts were also given to us to serve as a bridge to bring others into the church, and to Him. Bringing others to Christ doesn’t have to be a struggle. It can be as simple as sharing “What you love to do” with others.

Visit our website today, and find assistance with starting your personal “Bridge Ministry”. And enjoy the many free tools that are available to assist you with your spiritual growth, professional Christian counseling, answers to frequently asked questions, daily news articles that affects Christians and political information.

No matter what religion you are, there is a lot more to churches, synagogues and mosques than just prayer meetings and bible classes. Records must be kept of all activities that involve the church and its members. Church committees are accountable for everything that happens within their responsibilities. That’s why even churches need a document management filing system.

Ministers need to spend as much time as possible tending to the needs of their parishioners. But they also have to ensure that their record keeping is accurate and up-to-date as well. There are often many different people involved in the running of any place of worship, and the successful functioning vitally depends on a modern and comprehensive church database management system.

It’s imperative an efficient filing system is implemented to reduce the time spent on administrative tasks because there are so many different factors that have to be accounted for.

The types of records that must be kept so that they can easily be found when needed include: prepared sermons and speeches, books and research material for future sermons, topical sermon outlines, current lists of parishioners, marriages, weddings, certificates of births, christenings, baptisms, deaths, and funerals.

Files for financial records relating to all income, donations, expenditure, wages, budgets, fund-raising campaigns, committee meetings, minutes taken of such meetings, annual reports, newsletters and all other written material.

If the church has a mortgage, that file must be closely managed to ensure that payments don’t get neglected. A smart filing system has built-in reminder settings for regular payments such as this.

Churches should always have enough bibles or other resources for attendees. If new resources need to be purchased, records should be kept. It’s natural for these resources to wear out as they are used frequently.

The church also has to maintain records relating to equipment usage and maintenance, warranties, repair manuals, repairs done to the building itself, whether outside or inside and such things as painting, woodwork repairs, etc.

Records of the regular repairmen used should be kept so that if work needs to be carried out, they can handle it and provide the same high standard of workmanship.

A software management tool is the only way all of these records can be kept and be able to handle documents in different formats and store them within the same files. Such a system doesn’t have to be alphabetical. It can be customized to suit the needs of the church. By having a central computer-based master copy of all files and documents in a church database management system, any member of the office staff or committee can check where a file is located at any given time.

This comprehensive document management system will help the minister in many ways. Because it will be more efficient, he can file documents easily and quickly. He can also locate information just as quickly, reducing the time he’s forced to spend on administrative matters.

Different religions may also have specific additional needs apart from those mentioned here and they also have to be taken into consideration. This is also why customized, modern document management software is so beneficial.

Sibling rivalry is one of the oldest problems in humanity. Rivalries often occur due to jealousy, competition and a child’s perception that he or she is not accepted. It’s normal for a child to begin to explore who he or she is in relationship to others. Since children most often spend time with other family members, they may become more comfortable and feel safe sharing their frustrations with other siblings. Read though some of the causes of sibling rivalries written below. Then read through “What Parents Can Do” to help you solve some of the battles that occur between your children. Review the “Mediation” process at the end of this article.

Causes of Sibling Rivalry

Children who are bored, hungry or tired have a greater chance of fighting with a brother or sister.
Children may be seeking attention from a brother or sister so they start to fight.
Some children have not been taught that fighting is unacceptable behavior in the family.
Children may feel that a parent is favoring their brother or sister. This causes the child to feel unaccepted and resentful toward other siblings.
As children go through natural stages of physical, social and emotional development, they have a need to explore who they are in relationship to other siblings. This may lead to some rivalry with a sibling due to jealousy or competition.
Stress in a child’s life may lead to agitated behavior toward other sibling. This may also occur when the child see the parent going through a stressful situation.

What Parents Can Do?

Try not to compare your children. This may cause one child to feel inferior or less accepted.
Keep the competition between your children at a minimum. Instead of the children working against one other to be “first,” have them work together to beat the clock. Reward them together when they accomplish a task together.
You may need to change your children’s daily routine when you discover that a rivalries occur at a specific time on a daily basis. For example, some kids are assigned chores right after school. Your children may be tired at this time and need some “down time.”
Kids want things to be fair, but they need to be taught that things are not always equal.
Place your children in situations that they will have fun together as a family. You do not have to spend money to do this. Go to a park and play a game. Do artwork together. Teach your children to cook as a team.
Parents need to model appropriate behavior. If the parent is constantly quarreling with the spouse or another family member in front of their children, then the child may view this as appropriate behavior.

Other Things To Consider:

Do not allow one child to take a parenting role over another child for long periods of time. This puts too much pressure on the parenting child and may cause the younger child to build resentment toward his or her sibling. When an older child is given the task of watching a younger child, provide the younger child with some specific duties that will make her feel like she has an important role in help while you are gone.

Do not assume that the older sibling is always causing the rivalries because “he should know better.” Let the older child know that the younger child may be irritating, you will help the younger child change her behavior and, you want the older child to be more patient.

Do not be too quick to intervene. If your children are safe from physical harm, sometimes it’s acceptable to provide your children some time to sort out their differences without your help. It’s appropriate for you, however, to keep an eye and ear on the conflict to see how it’s progressing.

Don’t get pulled into your children’s conflicts and avoid taking sides. This will only add fuel to the fire and build resentment toward you as a parent.

Mediation: Let’s Talk Things Out

Set up a family meeting to discuss the rivalries and conflicts between your children. Your role as the parent is to mediate the conflicts. As a mediator you give each child a chance to speak without interruption. Ask each child how the conflict makes him or her feel. Then, allow each child to come up with a solution to the conflict. The parent’s role here is to give each child a fair chance to speak in a safe environment. Name-calling and insults should not be allowed. The mediator needs to set the boundaries before mediation take place.

Most church bulletins unfortunately, are very poorly designed and cheaply printed. While most churches are on a tight budget, a quality church bulletin design can go a long way towards improving a church. Members become better informed, participate more actively at events and think better overall of the church. You will be surprised at how far good marketing materials can take you.

1. Make Your Church Bulletin Easy to Read

The number one most important thing to consider when creating a church bulletin is the typography. Most churches have many members all with varying eyesight quality. Older members especially have trouble reading very tiny type. This is why it’s good to try and find a happy medium. You want to be able to include as much information as possible, but still make the church bulletin easy to read by any member of any age.

Play around with different fonts and font sizes and have a sampling of people from different age groups of your church look it over and comment on how well they can read the type. The easier your bulletin is to read, the more people will act on the information within it.

2. Add Photos and Color

Nothing is worse than a boring old church bulletin in black text, printed on flimsy paper. They are easy to ignore and often thrown away quickly. You can have a much greater impact by adding some photos and color to your church bulletin. This can cost more, but the return on your investment can also be much larger.

People love images and color and these elements will draw them in and make it easier to absorb everything in the bulletin. Images and graphics also work well to break up large blocks of text, which can make reading seem like a daunting task. Add some life to your bulletins and you will not be sorry with the results.

3. Use Your Church Branding

It can be hard to think of a church like a business, but when it comes to branding the same rules apply. A strong church starts with a strong brand and one of the leading ways to strengthen your brand is to use your logo and brand styling consistently across all your marketing materials.

This includes, church bulletins, newsletters, the website, flyers and anything else you print to hand out to members and potential members. The easiest way to keep things consistent is to create a style guide for your church which tells whoever is creating designs for your church how to use the logo, the church colors and other brand elements.

This will help create a uniform look and is much more professional. It’s the little details like this that can really make a difference in the long-term growth of a church.

Follow these church bulletin design tips and your church members will be more active than ever.

Here are some model answers for the question: Why are you interested in this position? Adapt these answers to your own circumstances. You want your answer to sound natural and unrehearsed even though you have actually given it a lot of thought and know in advance what you are going to say.

As a general rule, don’t give answers that involve money or benefits. Save that for later. You don’t want to be overly interested in the financial aspects of the job. You want them to be impressed with your enthusiasm for the company.

When you give your qualifications, give the condensed version and start with recent experience. This is not the time to start with your first job and go chronologically through every position you have ever held. That is the job of your resume. This is the time to succinctly give the highlights of your experience that match the job description.

1. I am uniquely qualified for this position and it is a culmination of my skills, education and expertise. (There is a symmetry in answering in threes.)

2. I have always wanted to work for a hotel, a city or whatever. Then give your reasons why.

3. I have always wanted to live in Central Florida. (However, the location should not be your first reason, maybe third or fourth.)

4. Working for your company would be the pinnacle of my career and then explain why.

5. With twenty years of prior experience, I believe I can bring some innovative ideas to this job and then elaborate without being a know-it-all.

6. These are some challenging times and I have some ideas about meeting these challenges that I would like to share.

7. This is not just a job for me. I am passionate about working in this field and this is where I want to work.

8. I made a mistake by moving out of state and I want to move back to Florida as soon as possible.

9. I know that your company has an excellent reputation and has some well-known experts in the field. I believe I have a lot to offer and can add to the progress already made in this field.

10. I have been planning for this job my whole life. I have the education, the aptitude and the passion for this job. It is a natural progression of all my previous jobs.

If you able to answer this question, you will be interviewing like a pro!

Intermediate term refers to the financial goals you plan to reach within five years. For example, if you want to accumulate funds to put money down for investment in real estate four years from now, some growth-oriented invest­ments may be suitable.

Although some stocks may be appropriate for a two- or three-year period, not all stocks are good intermediate-term investments. Some stocks are fairly stable and hold their value well, such as the stock of large or established dividend-paying companies. Other stocks have prices that jump all over the place, such as those of untested companies that haven’t been in existence long enough to develop a consistent track record.

If you plan to invest in the stock market to meet intermediate-term goals, consider large, established companies or dividend-paying companies in indus­tries that provide the necessities of life (like the food and beverage industry, or electric utilities). In today’s economic environment, I strongly believe that stocks attached to companies that serve basic human needs should have a major presence in most stock portfolios. They’re especially well-suited for intermediate investment goals.

Just because a particular stock is labeled as being appropriate for the inter­mediate term doesn’t mean you should get rid of it by the stroke of midnight five years from now. After all, if the company is doing well and going strong, you can continue holding the stock indefinitely. The more time you give a well-positioned, profitable company’s stock to grow, the better you’ll do.

Investing for a Purpose

When someone asked the lady why she bungee jumped off the bridge that spanned a massive ravine, she answered, “Because it’s fun!” When someone asked the fellow why he dove into a pool chock-full of alligators and snakes, he responded, “Because someone pushed me.” You shouldn’t invest in stocks unless you have a purpose that you understand, like investing for growth or investing for income. Even if an advisor pushes you to invest, be sure that your advisor gives you an explanation of how each stock choice fits your purpose.

Preparing for the long term

Stock investing is best suited for making money over a long period of time. When you measure stocks against other investments in terms of five to (preferably) ten or more years, they excel. Even investors who bought stocks during the depths of the Great Depression saw profitable growth in their stock portfolios over a ten-year period. In fact, if you examine any ten-year period over the past fifty years, you see that stocks beat out other financial investments (such as bonds or bank investments) in almost every period when measured by total return (taking into account reinvesting and compounding of capital gains and dividends)!

Of course, your work doesn’t stop at deciding on a long-term investment. You still have to do your homework and choose stocks wisely, because even in good times, you can lose money if you invest in companies that go out of business.

Because so many different types and categories of stocks are available, virtually any investor with a long-term perspective should add stocks to his investment portfolio. Whether you want to save for a young child’s college fund or for future retirement goals, carefully selected stocks have proven to be a superior long-term investment.

You’ve decided to build a new church or to build on to your existing church. This is a very exciting time in the life of a congregation, full of big dreams and excitement about the fellowship that will be enjoyed in your new house of worship.

But don’t let all that excitement keep you from seeing the hard reality that a church construction project is a very complex process that can end up costing you a lot more time and money if you don’t do it right.

It is imperative that you find professionals to work with on your project who actually have documented experience working with your type of project. While a development is a development in the eyes of city planners, it will help you tremendously if you can work with someone who has been through the process of church construction in the past.

Just because you hire the best expert church builders out there, however, does not mean that your voice as the pastor of the church should not be heard. It’s your money – really, your congregation’s money – that is going to build the church, and if your needs aren’t being met you need to find new people to work with or insist on doing things the way you think is best for your congregation.

There are many legal and technical hurdles that need to be cleared in the process of building a new church, from site selection and improvement to making sure you can actually build on the site and get utilities there, traffic studies, zoning codes, sign regulations and much more. These land use details can take up a big chunk of your budget, and most pastors don’t even think about them in the planning process.

That’s why it is so important to work with a professional in church construction who can really help you with your master plan so you know how big of a building you need, what kind of spaces should be included and how to position it on your site so that it meets all code requirements.

When you’re excited about getting a new building it can seem like a waste of time to take these slow planning steps, but good master planning is never a waste and often saves you money because you know the potential issues before they come up.

This will allow you to really enjoy the design and construction process for your new church and will ensure that you’re meeting all the necessary requirements your city or county have for new construction. It’s not glamorous, but it’s very important for your project’s success.

Salt Lake City is growing rapidly, and many people are moving to the city to live in a place that ranks highly on Best Places to Live lists. A quick visit, however, is not enough to understand SLC’s unique weather. There’s always something to do, from skiing in the winter to hiking in the summer.

Here are five facts about Salt Lake City weather.

1. Variable Temperatures

Cities on the coasts typically feature relatively stable weather. The Great Lakes also mediate temperatures in cities that border them. This capital city, however, has weather moderated only by the Great Salt Lake, and temperatures fluctuate considerably. Highs of over 100 degrees are not uncommon, and the temperature can remain below freezing through parts of winter.

2. Semi-Arid Conditions

While it does not feature the desert-like conditions of other cities in the Western United States, SLC still receives fairly little rainfall during the year. Residents can expect long stretches of time without rain, and its humidity is fairly low. Those who come from other portions of the United States may be surprised at how noticeable this low humidity is.

3. Warm Winters

While many from the Sun Belt scoff at the notion that Salt Lake is warm in the winter, temperatures rarely drop below zero degrees. At this elevation and latitude, its temperature is far warmer than many would predict. Cold air masses often come from northern latitudes in Canada, but the Rocky Mountains tend to block much of this cold air. Because of northern Utah’s mountain snow, Utah is known for some of the best skiing and snowboarding in the world.

4. Fog and Haze

Dry cities are rarely foggy; Salt Lake City, however, is an exception. A phenomenon called an inversion occurs often, which causes the nearly air to, essential, flip upside down. As a result, cloud-like conditions drop to ground level and cause foggy conditions. This fog can persist and transform into haze during the day. Pollutants often get trapped and make this haze even stronger. Those from foggy cities, however, will find the fog to be relatively mild.

5. Four Seasons

Many areas of the United States do not truly feature four true seasons. The Southeast, for example, has a long warm season followed by a cool winter, and parts of California seem to defy traditional seasons. Northern Utah, on the other hand, has four distinct seasons that many residents enjoy.

Salt Lake City is consistently lauded as a great place for families. Before moving, however, it helps to know what one will be dealing with. By having realistic expectations of the city’s weather, new residents will not be surprised.

And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. Mark 1:17 NIV

There is a very interesting word in the English language called a “pattern.” It has several meanings and thus serves numerous purposes while trying to convey a thought. Some of the meaning would include: design: a repeated decorative design, e.g. on fabric; plan or model: a plan or model used as a guide for making something; prototype: an original design or model from which exact copies can be made; or a good example: a model that is considered to be worthy of imitation, just to name a few. Jesus Christ is often referred to as the “Pattern Son.” In other words, He is a Model, a Prototype or Good Example, that has been used by the Great Seamstress or Tailor of Heaven, as a guide for making something or an original design from which exact copies can be made and is considered worthy of imitation. With Christ solely established as our “pattern” in life, ministry, business, etc, let’s take a look at how He built His ministry.

The scripture above says that Jesus’ original offer to His first members, first leadership team, first staff, was: ‘Come, follow Me, and I will make you to become….!” What a deal! He didn’t lure them with a promise to hold a title. He didn’t negotiate with them for a good salary. Jesus didn’t hire a Human Resource Manager to sell the disciples on the 401K Plan and other “bennies” (benefits). Jesus offered them something greater, an opportunity to “become.” Jesus was and still is a MAKER.” He is in the Making business.

My question to the Church is, “who are the Movers and the Makers in the Church?” It seems like few are in the “making” business anymore. I get such a holy anger when I hear leaders talk about how one day God is going to send lawyers, doctors, professionals and millionaires to their church. Well, I’m all for evangelistic efforts and agree that these people have to go somewhere to be discipled, by why “your church?” Why can’t you follow Christ’s pattern and look your members in the face and say as He did, “Follow me, and I will make you become…” This is the language of a builder. Many leaders have gotten out of the making business and have resorted to the “taking” business. This mentality has originated in the world. The world calls it mergers and acquisitions. This strategy is everyone is quite while you are growing. No one seems to pay you any mind. But once you start growing, they start watching you. The moment you start becoming powerful, you are viewed as a threat or as an asset. When they can’t stand you any longer, they merge with you or “take” you. That’s the taking spirit. That devilish spirit has crept into the Church. Instead of looking at the resources that God has drawn to your house as raw material poised to be transformed into greatness, many leaders look daily at their church’s front door waiting and praying to God to send ready made product through the door. We want other people’s singers to lead our choirs; other people’s intercessors to lead us in prayer; other people’s ministers to preach to us and other people’s leaders to lead us. Trading talent in the Church has become rampant and fierce. But why? Because it has become much easier to “take” than to “make”. Take my word for it; the “making process” takes hard work. It’s tedious and strenuous. The making process takes patience and endurance.

For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

In Hebrews 11:10, the Bible records that when Abraham was called to do what he had never done before and go where he had never gone, he obeyed and went looking for a city. This wasn’t just any city but a city whose foundation had been marked by a Maker, a Builder- God. The word “maker” in the scripture means a builder, a framer, an artisan.

That’s what sons in the body of Christ need today-master builders, framers, artisans. Those that will “make them become.” The sons of today no longer need the experience of the “takers.” These are leaders that are so inundated with trying to build a dynasty that they have neglected to build those around them. And as a result, they continually pray to the Father for Him to send them “trained servants.” This is especially true in the Western world because we vie for a life of luxury where everything is pre-made for us. We live in “prefab” homes built in factories, wear synthetic hair, glue on acrylic nails, implant silicone breast, get our ordinations and doctorate degrees online and are now trying to perfect facial transplants. Who has the time to “make” anyone become anything? I hear God speaking.

There is a gold mine in every local church. The challenge is that the “gold” is in a raw form in the beginning. They are called the Ministry of Helps. They are the Ephesians 4:12 saints that are to be perfected (equipped, completed, made) to carry out the work of the ministry by the 5-fold ministry gifts (apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher). The raw form needs to come in contact with builders and framers that will make them become something. Every leader must recognize the potential of their ministry of helps (see I Cor. 12:28). God has already sent enough help and resources in what you have already to maximize the level that you are on right now. Your Ministry of Helps just needs to be identified, refined, activated and then mobilized.

The ministry of helps is more than a group of volunteers, more than individuals who say, “Pastor, you can count on me this time,” more than a bunch of folks saying, “I want to try this area out, and if it doesn’t pan out, I’ll try this. Just as long as the Pastors see me, I’ll eventually get to where I’m going!” No! The ministry of helps is not a springboard for someone’s own “higher calling.”

The Ministry of Helps is a supernatural calling. Just what is a “calling”? A calling is a “divine invitation,” to be called forth by name, by God.

People who are called to the ministry of helps are to carry the same burden and vision of carrying the Gospel as the Pastor or other five-fold ministry gift. Responsibilities will differ, but the heart cry should be the same. The sooner the ministry of helps see themselves as extensions of their pastors, the sooner ministries will begin to experience the full manifestation of God’s Presence in their church services. The ministry of helps plays a very important supportive role in ministry.

In conclusion, remember this: when it was time for Abram to go pick a fight with his enemy, he didn’t go hire help. Do you know why? He had built men, strong warriors, trained servants from the inside. They were born and raised in his own house. He probably never prayed, “God send me mighty men to come help me.” But he probably did pray, “Make the men that You’ve given me mighty!”

When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he led out his trained men, born in his house, three hundred and eighteen, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. Gen. 14:14 NASB.