What I enjoy most about bivocational ministry

 Today was a very busy day. We had an online auction conclude Tuesday night. On Wednesday people were coming in to pick up their winnings. Today, we were shipping those items that needed shipment, serving people who didn't pick up their items yesterday and receiving items for our next auction that begins next Tuesday. In between all that, I was taking pictures of some items for our next auction. Then a text came in.

A lady's father died a few months ago, and she is trying to decide what to do with a household of stuff and a ton of memories associated with most of the items. I agreed to meet her at the house and see if I could help her. Unfortunately, what was in the house had little value, not enough to hold an auction. It didn't take too much discussion to see she was feeling completely overwhelmed having to deal with it. I could identify with her stress. Before becoming an auctioneer I was the executor of an estate for a family member and had to deal with the stress of deciding what to do with everything.

I began to explain to her what I felt would be the simplest way to deal with all the material things. I then told her I was the pastor of North Madison Baptist Church here in Madison and asked if I could pray for her. She agreed, and I prayed that God would give her wisdom and insight to handling the estate and that He would surround her with His presence and peace throughout the process.

This is not the first time I've been able to pray for someone dealing with the stress of deciding what to do with a loved one's estate. This is what I enjoy most about being a bivocational minister. I get called into people's lives to help them solve problems, and in the process I'm able to minister to them. Not one time has anyone refused my offer to pray for them. I've been able to direct people to churches in their community that I know will minister to them.

I was 64 when I got my auctioneer's license. People asked why I wanted to do that at my age, and I responded that it was a way to serve people. It would be an extension of my ministry. Auctioneers get called when people have to settle estates and don't know what to do; we get called when people are downsizing or moving into assisted living and they need to dispose of some of the items they've collected over the year; and we get called by those who buy and sell to support their families. In all three examples, I have an opportunity to minister to people at their point of need.

I encourage all bivocational ministers to consider how their other work can also become a ministry. As a bivocational minister, I am a minister 24/7 whether I'm working in a factory, selling cars or conducting an auction. Your ministry doesn't end at the front doors of the church you're serving. God has given you a much larger ministry than that, and that is what I enjoy most about bivocational ministry.