The next priority is your family

If you reach every child or young person in your city and your own children’s needs are being overlooked, you’re a phony and a hypocrite. We must do all we can to make sure our family comes before our ministry. When you’re at your busiest is when you probably need to get away for a day or so.

Have a date with your spouse and do something with just you and your children. Your children have to share you with the entire church, but they won’t mind it as much if you make special times to be with them, even if it’s just a special lunch or dinner.

Don’t ever forget that Father God established the home as the first institution—even before the church. Part of this priority is providing for your family. Two things all families have to do are eat and pay bills. If you have to work outside the church to do this, then you are not doing something bad. Your ministry comes after you have worked to provide for your family.

You may ask, “But how can ministry advance if it’s third?” Remember, it’s not your ministry, it’s the Lord’s ministry. He is also the one who causes it to advance.

You also have to face the fact that you just can’t do everything. If you are not on full-time staff, you must learn to delegate. The more people you get to help you carry a heavy object, the easier it is for each person. As the ministry grows and calls for a bigger demand on your time, you must learn to recruit and delegate.

Moses found himself in the same dilemma. In Exodus 18:17-26, we are told of the godly counsel that Jethro gave his son-ill-law Moses. Jethro advised Moses to appoint trustworthy, godly men over the people. He also told Moses to recognize their abilities. Some could handle 10, some 50, and some many more. But he instructed him to spread out the load and not to try to carry it all himself. You must also learn to delegate and find help so that you can keep your priorities in the right order.