For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance, even as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake.
—First Thessalonians 1:5
As we are learning to minister for the Lord, we should not make skill or even content the focus of our speaking. Instead, we should focus upon who we are. When some brothers minister, they come across as those who are appropriate to minister on God’s behalf, while others present themselves as persons unfitting to speak God’s word.When you speak, you should speak as one who is speaking for the Lord. When you stand up, people should have the feeling that you are respectable and possess some spiritual substance. Those who hear you should have the sense that you are someone who lives before God and who has been in His hand and under His dealing and shaping.
Therefore, I say strongly that we should not care so much about what it is we will say in those few minutes we speak; instead, we must realize it is a matter of who we are. It is a matter of our person. Are we godly? Do we fervently love the Lord? Have we allowed the Lord to work in our lives? Are we someone who enjoys the divine life? Our speaking is dependent upon who we are.
Brothers, when you speak for the Lord, the first thing you must pay attention to is your person. The kind of person you are is displayed in your words. You may be able to speak high things, but your words reveal your real situation. The Lord will only be able to use you to the degree that your person allows.
Adapted from Being One with the Ministry, Volume One, pages 14-15.
Tomorrow: “Healthy, Useful, and Qualified”