If there is a single most difficult thing in ministry, I believe it might be how to tell people “no” and not feel bad about it. There are always requests for a minister to do something.

I have written several articles recently about visitation – whether it is an absolute requirement for all ministers or not. See the most recent post here. But there are many other “requirements” that are placed upon ministers. Some come from the common laundry list of “duties” that are in our job description (or assumed to be). Others are individual requests from members and friends of the church or community for us to help with certain needs or activities. Even when we know that our plate if full, we find it difficult to say no to any of the worthy requests.I keep going back to a seminar that Bill Isaacs taugh several years ago on “Doing one thing.” In that seminar, he suggested that each of us has talents & giftings that make us more productive in certain areas and less productive in others. He told us that we can never be everything to everyone so we should focus on the things we do best and leave the other things for someone else. See a similar article that Bill wrote here.

Paul reminded Timothy of this in 1 Timothy 5:17 (NIV), “The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.” Notice that these elders had specific work but it did not include the most common duties of pastors today. Does that mean that we should NOT do any of the other tasks? NO!!! But it tells us that we need to focus on the “work” that God HAS called us to do.

The problem of all this is, “If I don’t do it, who will?” This is especially true in a small church where there are only a few volunteers and they are already loaded down with duties. So, lacking other resources, the pastor accepts every request – even if it is not an area where she is gifted and even if he is way past the point of being able to accomplish the real “work” which God has called him to do.

However, God will always provide whatever we lack if it is needed in order to serve him: In an article entitled “Ask… And it shall be given you” Bill writes of the manner that God provided someone to fill a vacancy the Bill had hesitatingly been substituting. Bill wrote another article on his blog concerning a man in the Bible named “Bezalel.” Never heard of him? Well, check it out here. Short review: Moses needed help & God provided Bezalel for the specific need.

I recently read a report written by Gayle Tuttle on the subject of saying no without guilt. (You can read the report here.) Gayle wrote to a woman’s perspective but we guys can benefit from this also. In that article she tells us that the first step is to know our purpose: why are we here? Other highlights include:

• Have a single focus
• Know your goals
• Know your strengths, limitations, talents, and personality
• Accept your part of the work and leave His and others alone
• Remember that God is the one who gives promotion

I would really like to hear your testimony of how you were able to trust God, say no and then watch as God provided HIS answer. Leave your comments below for others to read.