(On Ministry, Timing, Ethics And Procedure)
Pastor Bimbo Animashaun
Don’t pull out of school because you want to do ministry. Don’t boycott lectures because you want to go on marathon prayers.
Don’t neglect exam preparation to soak in the Word. In a nutshell, don’t abandon your studies to go start ministry work.
Papa, Bishop Francis Wale Oke once shared how the Lord rescued him early in ministry from making this grave mistake of pulling out of school to go into full-time ministry.
He was a student at the University of Lagos, and according to him, the hand of the Lord was so strong upon him such that by 1978, he was already traversing the length and breadth of the nation with the Gospel.
And so he began to think, “Now is time for me to leave. I do not need this University education after all, because after finishing, what else will I be doing than to preach?”.
That was his thinking but God in His mercy intervened very swiftly!
Pa. S. G. Elton had been invited to preach in their Fellowship (where he was President) and preparation was on top gear.
So when Pa. Elton came, the Spirit of the Lord spoke very clearly through him, “Some of you young folks are boiling with a vision from God, so you want to abandon your University education and run out to preach”.
Pa. Elton continued, “Don’t you do it. God is not in a hurry. He did not make a mistake allowing you to come here. Even if you will not use your certificate, finish your course first. Otherwise tomorrow your critics will conclude that you are a drop-out. Wait, finish school and go forth to do God’s will”.
Boom! That was it and Papa’s ministry was preserved. You see, a generation that is not guided by the wisdom of the fathers will soon go into oblivion. Imagine the weight of that prophetic counsel by Pa. S. G. Elton!
Today, Bishop Francis Wale Oke’s impact on the sand of every continent of the world is incontestible.
Beloved, it’s good to be ZEALOUS but that zeal must be tempered by KNOWLEDGE.
My take over the years is that IF A MAN CAN ABANDON SCHOOL, HE WILL ALSO ABANDON MINISTRY ONE DAY.
Friend, God is not in a hurry and He’s never late; He’s always on time!
The reader is reminded that before Simon Peter, the fisherman, ultimately responded to the call of the Master, he, with his colleagues, were WASHING THEIR NETS – Lk.5:2 – they didn’t just abandon the nets; they washed them.
It’s important to tidy up your studies before you set out FULLY into ministry work. Of course you will do some level of ministry on Campus but it shouldn’t be at the expense of your academics.
Attend classes, read extensively, rub minds with your colleagues and prepare thoroughly for your exams.
By this, your Christian testimony will not be compromised and you will have the “psychological freedom” to do ministry work.
I sometimes see some young folks say God said they shouldn’t go for exams and they will come out with a First Class.
No, that’s not God; that’s the devil! I once handled a case of that nature for a beloved one.
Other related cases abound. I once told a young man (a mighty prophetic implement) to go get tertiary education and by God’s Grace, he’s in school today while his prophetic calling is intact and he’s my protegee now.
My suspicion is that lots of young men and women are SINCERE in their passion but they’re SINCERELY WRONG.
They only need guidance and that can preserve a generation.
We don’t have to repeat the mistakes of history. We can learn from the fathers and thereby minimize avoidable challenges in ministry.
I trust this made little sense Sirs and Mas?
Peace!!!
Source: Bimbo Animashaun Teaching Ministries |Published with permission.
Aphorism CITY 