I was twenty-four years old and had been saved for just a few months. I had been attending a Bible-teaching church upon the recommendation of the person who led me to the Lord. Week after week, I would learn things from the Bible I knew nothing about. I had developed a hunger for God that could not be quenched.
Before long, I developed a growing desire to serve God and His people. I watched men and women in my church faithfully serving the Lord, and I deeply respected them. Something inside me wanted to become that kind of person. And so, I began praying and asking the Lord what I should do.
Over time, He made something clear to me. Serving in my church would become an important step in my spiritual growth. 1 Peter 4:10 (NLT) was speaking loudly to me. “God has given each of you a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.” The problem was that I had no idea what my spiritual gifts were. Then someone gave me a piece of advice that proved incredibly wise: If you want to discover the gifts God has placed in you, start serving people. Your gifts will reveal themselves through service. That was such an incredible piece of advice because, as I began to serve, I would notice what I was good at, what I was very good at, and that helped me understand the gifting God had placed within me.
Initially, committing to serve terrified me. Up to that point, I was probably the most uncommitted person I knew. I avoided commitments whenever possible. But after praying about it, I stepped forward anyway. I committed to serving once a week in facility maintenance on my day off. A short time later, Renee and I volunteered in childrens ministry every other week. Honestly, part of me thought I might feel more comfortable jumping out of an airplane without a parachute. I was terrified, and my doubts grew. Thoughts would come like, “What are you doing making commitments like this?” or “Why would God ever use you as a leader?” Fear and feelings of inadequacy would surface, and the enemy seemed ready to remind me of every weakness in my character. But the Holy Spirit kept reminding me of the truth. Jesus had died for me. God’s grace had forgiven me. And God Himself would transform me and use me for His plan and purpose.
Little by little, the Lord began teaching me something important: if you want to serve and lead others, you must first learn to lead yourself. Each commitment I made—each small act of obedience—was teaching me how to lead my own life under God’s direction. Through serving, the Lord was shaping my character and stretching my faith.
In that time, a recurring lie would creep in: You can’t serve others or become a leader until you’ve cleaned up every part of your life. Over time, I realized that the idea was completely false. None of us is capable of perfecting ourselves before serving God. If that were the requirement, no one would ever be used by Him.
The truth is just the opposite. God often uses serving as one of His primary tools to change and transform our lives. When we commit ourselves to loving and serving others, He begins shaping our character. He teaches us to overcome selfishness, make sacrifices, and grow in humility. The very act of serving becomes part of the process that matures us.
In other words, we don’t serve because we have already arrived spiritually. Often, serving is the path God uses to help us spiritually grow and mature.
Character development and spiritual growth are lifelong journeys. When we faithfully say yes to the opportunities God places before us, something remarkable happens. Our faith grows stronger, and our confidence in Him deepens. And we begin to discover that His promise is true.
Philippians 4:13 (NLT) “I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need.”
When we rely on Christ’s strength rather than our own, we discover that God can take ordinary people and grow them into leaders who impact others' lives. And very often, that journey begins with something as simple as saying yes to serving. It's definitely something to think and pray about.
