As we think about the teaching of the Great Commission, a question that I often ask myself is this—why aren’t more young people surrendering to the call of full time ministry in their lives? I firmly believe that God is still in the business of calling young people to full time ministry and desires more than ever for the task to be accomplished; but where are the willing hearts of the young people who once surrendered to whatever was asked of them? Where are the numbers of young people who will give what they have to accomplish what God wants?
This question has motivated me to ask several teenagers just what is hindering so many of them from answering the call. They believe that God does still call people, but they are hesitant to respond to that very thing. In seeking an answer from them, I began to notice a common theme in the answers— most teenagers are afraid that answering the call will require too much of a sacrifice. In hearing these answers, I began to examine just why our young people feel that way. What has caused them to think of surrendering to God’s will as too big of a sacrifice? What has happened in our teaching and discipleship that has made them think that the work is just not worth it? Most importantly, what can be done to help our young people to realize that the work of the Lord is worth every bit of our existence?
In thinking through this issue, the Lord kept bringing to mind a very familiar Bible story. In John chapter six, we are brought to this scene where Christ is looking out over a multitude and having compassion for their need to eat. As Christ was always training His disciples, He asked Phillip what could be done to provide bread for this great number of people. After Philip missed the opportunity to recognize that Christ would have it taken care of, Andrew brought up a young lad who was offering up his lunch to be used for the great multitude. Now, on the human level, we acknowledge that a young boy’s lunch would not be nearly sufficient to provide for a great multitude. However, God works on the level of the supernatural, and that lunch was more than enough to provide for the hunger of a great crowd. You see, when God is involved in that which we think is not enough, it always ends up being enough.
What is even more incredible is this truth that is shown throughout Scripture—God never wants us to sacrifice everything; He just wants us to be willing to sacrifice everything. Look at what the boy gave and then at what was leftover. Not only was his little lunch enough to feed that large multitude, he went home with twelve times the amount that he had left home with. I believe that when a person gets to the point that they are willing to surrender whatever they have for God’s use, they no longer look at it as a sacrifice, but rather as a joy to give to the Lord. This young man was willing, and Christ blessed mightily.
Another example of this was Abraham offering Isaac. God never intended for Isaac to be killed. He just wanted to make sure that Abraham was willing to give up his most prized possession in obedience to God. Once God saw Abraham’s faith and obedience, He then began to fulfill the promise that He had made to Abraham.
The important thing for our young people is not that they get taught that ministry and surrender to God’s will is all about sacrificing everything, but rather that it is about a willingness to do what God wants. Once the heart is turned to the will of God and surrendered, then God can accomplish great things in that person’s life. The greatest thrill of ministry is knowing that we are doing what God wants us to be doing. It has not required some great sacrifice. It has been a privilege to give back to God what is already His. May each of us accept the challenge to teach this to the next generation. Surrendering to God’s will is never a negative event. It is truly the purpose for why we are here—to accomplish all that God wants accomplished for His glory!
Teenager, are you willing to give what you have? There may be things in life that God will take so that He can draw you closer. However, in the end, the bountiful blessings and fulfillments of God’s promises make surrendering all a blessing. Please, do not look at what you will lose, but rather what God can do with a vessel “meet for the Master’s use."
