Personal and Ministry Testimony

On September 8, 1986 I accepted Christ as Savior and Lord of my life. I had been raised in church and knew a lot of facts about God, but I did not know Christ in a personal way. Christ was only knowledge in my head; there was nothing in my heart. I was presented the Gospel for the first time when I was a junior in college. At that moment, I knew what my life was lacking and what could fill the void I sensed in my life. Over a period of one week, I contemplated the truth I had received against the years of teaching by family, friends, school, and my church. No matter how much common sense I could argue, I could not overcome the truth that I was lost.

Approximately one week after accepting Christ, I sensed the Lord was calling me to full-time Christian service. I continued to seek the Lord's will through prayer and His Word until August 1990 when I responded to His desire for my life.

My ministry philosophy is centered upon priorities. There are many important things that demand my attention. In order to remain in God's will, I must establish priorities in my life.

The greatest lesson to be taught is the one delivered by example. What I am speaks louder than what I say. People will look to me to determine if I live by what I teach.

The Word of God puts great emphasis upon our personal lives. The man of God is to lead a life that constitutes a worthy example for the people. When Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he told them, "Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1). Paul wrote to the church of Philippi, "The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do." (Philippians 4:9). He wrote to the church at Thessalonica, "You are witnesses, and God also, how devoutly and justly and blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you who believe.” (1 Thessalonians 2:10). He also wrote to Timothy, "Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity." (1 Timothy 4:12).

The most important priority in my life is that I may be an example in every area of my life, that I may say, as Paul told the Corinthians, "Imitate me." I divide this priority into four key areas in order of importance: God, family, health, and ministry.

The first and most important priority in my life is to have a growing and maturing relationship with Christ. This can only occur by being a learner and listener of God through His Word, prayer, and His divine providence for my life. Paul wrote to Timothy in I Timothy 4:13, "Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine," and "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15). The most important obligation of myself is to teach myself in the things of God.

The second area of importance in my life is to be a godly leader and teacher of my family. God has entrusted me to be a leader, teacher, and witness to my family. He has commanded me to be the head of my household (Ephesians 5:23) and love my wife just as Christ is the head of His church and loves His church. As Christ sacrificed Himself for the church, so should I sacrifice myself for my family. There will be many times that I will have to choose between the affairs of the church and the affairs of my family. I will not sacrifice the affairs of my family for the affairs of the church.

The third key area of importance is my health. Christ has granted me good health and prosperity. The life and the ministry that He has given me are His. Because I have been purchased of Him, I am not my own (1 Corinthians 6:20). His Word says that He dwells within me (1 Corinthians 3:16, 6:19). I, therefore, must ensure my good health to the best of my abilities.

The last key area of importance is the ministry that God has called me to. The first and foremost of my inward strength is the conviction that God has called me to the ministry. If I have the conviction that God has a specific calling for me, then all other areas in my life will fall into place.

The Word of God presents the minister as a God called man. In the Old Testament, no other person dares to invade the God called office of the Prophet (Ezekiel 2:1-3, Jeremiah 1:4-10, 23:30, Deuteronomy 18:20, Isaiah 6:8). In the New Testament, ministers are always spoken of as designated by God (Acts 20:28, Colossians 4:17). Paul and Barnabas were separated to the work that the Holy Spirit called them to do (Acts 13:2). The ministry constitutes a special gift from Christ to the church (Ephesians 4:11-12). In a sense, there is a cooperation between the divine and the human regarding the bestowing and use of spiritual gifts. Scripture reveals several facts about spiritual gifts in general. First, every believer has a spiritual gift (Romans 12:6, 1 Corinthians 12:7, Ephesians 4:7, 1 Peter 4:10). Second, spiritual gifts are divine enablings, sovereignly given by God in His grace (Romans 12:6, 1 Corinthians 12:11, 18). Third, spiritual gifts are to focus on Jesus Christ and to glorify Him. And last, spiritual gifts are given so the believers in Christ may edify other believers (1 Corinthians 12:7, 14:4-5, 17-26, Ephesians 4:12).

Since every believer has a spiritual gift or gifts, there is no indication that a believer cannot have more than one gift, which allows one to carry out God's work for the edification of His church. I believe it is very important that each believer should operate within his or her spiritual gift or gifts and natural talents. With this in mind, I believe that I must function in the Body of Christ as He has gifted me with the gift of teaching and administration. This is the only way I can carry forth His sovereign will, bring glory to Him, and edify other believers.

The gift of teaching is mentioned in each of the three major New Testament passages on spiritual gifts (Romans 12:7, 1 Corinthians 12:28, Ephesians 4:11). This underscores the importance of the educational ministry of the church. The gift of teaching is the supernatural ability of God to use me to expound His truth.

The center of Christian Education is not man but God, and my task is to bring the individual into the right relationship with Christ. Thus, Christian education is ultimately concerned with evangelism. To put it more simply, the purpose of Christian education is to lead each person into a decision to live as a Christian, thus making men whole.

I am a Southern Baptist because I believe that Baptists stand for distinctive truths to which other denominations do not adhere. I believe that I cannot compromise these truths without being disloyal to our Lord and to His Word.

David M. Brown, Divide-The-Truth Ministries