Ministry Calling

Dear Victorious,

How do you know if God is calling you to be a preacher?

Earnest L. - Lagos, Nigeria

Dear Earnest,

That's a big question. The simplest answer would be when you can't do anything else. And I'm serious about that. You should only consider being a preacher if you can't imagine yourself doing anything else. Beyond that, look at Biblical criteria for spiritual leaders in 1 Timothy 3. It gives you a good sound basis for evaluating your readiness for such a post.

Of course prayer and the counsel of other mature Christians would be necessary before you make a decision about being a full-time preacher. Does it line up with your giftedness? Do the people who know you and love you see that calling in you? Do they agree that you meet the spiritual qualifications?

Here is a link from one of my favorite web sites that gives you much more detail about the qualifications for being a preacher (or any other type of spiritual leader in a church).

http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/IVP-NT/1Tim/Leadership-Qualifications