Ministry Seasons

Where are you at in ministry? I don’t mean your location… rather, how do you assess your ministry and where it’s headed? How do you determine your immediate focus, as well as identify your next steps?

There are a variety of benchmarks people have used to assess the status and progress of their ministries. What books of the Bible have been taught in a given time, or what topics have been addressed? What kind of requests are shared in prayer meetings? What's the difference between Sunday AM and PM attendance, and why? And, of course, how many new believers and baptisms have we seen?

While these questions can be helpful when asked with discernment and pure motives, they can also be misleading. How exactly can we measure faithfulness and establish an approach that fits the needs of our current ministry context?

The glorious work our God is doing in the hearts of men is frequently illustrated in the Scriptures as that of a farmer (Matthew 13:1-32, 1 Corinthians 3:4-9, 2 Timothy 2:6). As we consider the church planting ministry that took place in the book of Acts, we can observe seasons of ministry that resemble what farmers regularly experience. Identifying seasons of ministry can be a helpful framework to discern the needs of our ministry and develop a corresponding strategy.

What do farmers do in winter? Nothing, right? Of course not! Farmers spend their winters maintaining equipment, preparing fields, and planning for what's next – planting season. The soil is tilled in the spring, and the seeds are put in the ground. The crop is watered and maintained in summer, and in fall comes the long-awaited harvest.

Each season takes time and requires work that fits that season. And the work in each season paves the way for what will take place the following.

Acts 1 was a kind of winter season. The believers were told to stay and wait for the promised Holy Spirit(Acts 1:4). In this season, their goals were established (Acts 1:8), and they organized leadership (Acts 1:12-26).

But after winter comes spring– known to farmers as “planting season.” And Acts 2:1-41 demonstrates this with a season of planting seeds of the gospel. Foreign Jews, likely repatriated diaspora, were given an opportunity to hear the truth in their heart languages. Acts 2 represents an opportunity that the church around the world is experiencingright now – when the nations come to us!

Then came a season of summer ministry. I’m not talking about Bible Camps and VBS programs. In Acts 2:42-47, seeds of truth were watered through teaching, fellowship, and prayer. Discipleship was taking place corporately in the temple and house to house. In Acts 3 -compassion ministry. Acts 4 – boldness in spite of government opposition. Acts5:1-13 – church discipline. In each of these circumstances, the field of Jerusalem was being watered, and the crop was maintained.

Then, in Acts 5:14-16, the harvest season was upon them. And what a harvest it was as multitudes were added to their number!

Just as farming seasons are a repeating cycle, so it is in ministry. In Acts 6, they returned from fall into winter. As folks brought complaints, it became a time for leadership to organize and plan once again. They again sprung into spring in Acts 7 as Stephen boldly planted seeds of the gospel. And in Acts 8, the drought of persecution hit the church and scattered them into new fields. And so, the seasons of ministry continued.

What season of ministry are you in? It’s such a comfort to know that God designed the seasons – even if it means transitioning from the glories of harvest to the quiet of winter. Identifying our current season of ministry helps us recognize what we should be doing today and what we should aim toward tomorrow.

So, no matter what season you’re in, remember that you’re just a humble gospel farmer, planting and watering seeds of truth as God allows. And may we be faithful and content to this holy task, knowing that God can cause the miraculous growth that He alone can do!

“So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth.” - 1 Corinthians 3:7 (NASB)

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