If you are working a “secular” job, you are not second class in God’s Kingdom. You are no less called or gifted than a pastor or a missionary. Your ministry is to represent Jesus in your own sphere of influence and to provide financial support that enables others to do the work God equips them to do.

So if God has wired you to be good at what you do—whether business or art, manufacturing or farming, music or medicine, or anything that allows you to freely help the needy and further the cause of Christ—rejoice! This is a great use of your life.

Leaving your job for “full-time ministry” may not be a step up for the Kingdom of God but a step down. God may have given you the ability, right where you are, to help churches and missionaries reach those God has called them to, as well as the ability to reach others in your own unique sphere of ministry.

Whether you are a grocery clerk, an assembly line worker, a salesperson, a nurse, a flight attendant, a stay-at-home mom, or a professional athlete, or whether you have a primary ministry of prayer or encouraging people, God has given you a unique platform. In all likelihood, no pastor or missionary will reach your neighbors, teachers, coworkers, coaches, or teammates. We each have our own God-given mission fields to serve every day. So use your platform for the glory of God, and then give generously to the causes of evangelism, justice, and mercy that are close to His heart.

God doesn’t just call His people to the far reaches of the Earth for His Kingdom. He also equips many servants to support and supply workers and to meanwhile represent Him in their own territory right where they live and work. Whatever He has called you to do, do it with your whole heart, giving generously out of the overflow He’s entrusted to you.

May each of us live daily in such a way as to look forward to hearing the Lord say to us, when we meet Him face to face, “Well done, you good and faithful servant! . . . You have been faithful in managing small amounts, so I will put you in charge of large amounts. Come on in and share my happiness!” (Matthew 25:21, GNT).

Adapted from Randy's book Giving Is the Good Life.

Photo by Luis Melendez on Unsplash