2 Timothy 1:6-7 “For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”

Have you ever felt incapable of doing what God has called you to do? Maybe reading that sentence you wonder if it was ever even God who called you to do that ministry assignment in the first place. Ministry is not for the faint of heart. Whether you are greeting visitors, preparing a meal, working in the tech booth, leading worship, or doing a public reading you will find challenges and opposition to the work you are called to do. 

I can easily recall several humiliating failures early in my attempts to serve the Lord. In college I was becoming more and more confident in my preaching ability, so I readily said yes when the opportunity came to give a message at our local homeless shelter. I studied and studied but with hours before the sermon was to be given, I still had nothing. With shame I went to my pastor (who happened to be my father) and had to tell him that I could not preach that day. In our moments of humiliation and failure it is tempting to walk away from serving all together. Maybe we don’t stop serving per se but only avoid those areas of ministry where we are likely to fail publicly. Either way we serve or don’t serve out of fear. 

In Paul’s final words to his protégé Timothy, he urges him not to give in to fear in serving Jesus. He reminds him that serving is a gift from God and that the fear we feel is not from God. The word here translated timid in the NIV and fear in the ESV is a word that means cowardice. Ministry is not for cowards. Like John Wayne said, “Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway.”

Instead of timidity, fear, and cowardice, God’s Spirit gives us three essential ingredients for the task ahead: power, love, and self-discipline. God’s power gives us the strength to do what we cannot do in our own flesh and the effectiveness to fulfill our calling with fruitfulness. Love motivates us to go beyond what we would naturally do for the glory of God and the good of others. Like power, love is a quality that God gives us. God’s love motivates our ministry and ensures that we resemble Christ in our service. Self-discipline is the gift that causes us to apply wisdom to the ministry situations we face. The word literally means “wise head.” When we serve the Lord, it is inevitable that the attacks of the enemy will also come. Distractions, failures, and accidents are thrown our way when we seek to engage in ministry. We need a wise head that keeps control and resounds not with the panic or anger of the flesh, but with cool head and the warm heart that only the Spirit can produce in us. 

Ministry is scary, but only when we try to do in our own flesh. Be courageous, saddle up, live out the calling that our Savior has given to you. Remember that the glory goes to him and the enabling comes from him, so serve with confidence and grace.