I was inspired by her testimony that day. According to her; “I would not have been here today if not that Pastor Demola wouldn’t give up on me. He kept following me up and ensured that I became rooted in God.” This was well over 10-12 years ago. I was not officially a pastor then, I was just a brother in Church. I understood the power of silent labours.
Friend, a lot of people would meet with surprises when we get to Heaven. Really, the things that we don’t count here count before God, and sadly, some of the things we count here do not count before God. It is good we understand what Heaven reckons with and stake our lives for such (Luke 15:7). There is something about silent labours that do not go unrewarded.
Epaphras has become one of my silent heroes lately. My heart often melts when I see that Paul commended this seemingly unknown young man who was just one of the congregation members at Colosse (Colossians 4:12). He was not a pastor or an ordained minister, yet, according to Paul, he was responsible for the establishment of the believers in those days; he laboured fervently in prayers.
Some people would not do anything significant with their lives unless they are seen. They won’t give unless someone notices them. If they are not officially in prayer unit in a Church, they won’t take up prayer burdens for that Church. Until the pastor hands over microphone to them to preach in Church, they don’t have any other platform through which they reach out to people (Acts 8:4-5).
For some, the social media have become the reason they would not do anything tangible for God. If there are no online posts, with comments and likes, they feel that they are not doing anything serious. They are more concerned about public views than real silent labours. They have forgotten that real labour is in secret, rewards are in the open (Matthew 6:3-6, Galatians 6:7-10).
“For I have no man like-minded, who will naturally care for your state” (Philippians 2:20). Leadership is most potent when it is silent. You don’t have to shout to do ministry. You don’t need a title to make impact. You don’t need to be seen to be relevant. Kingdom relevance is simply maximizing where you are and what you have to advance the course of God in your generation (Acts 13:36).
© ‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria