Thinking of Numbers 20 as a definition of “success in ministry” took me by surprise! Hearing some global workers on the field struggle to remain faithful in marriage let alone ministry makes us want to double down in praying about and working toward recommending steps to encourage faithfulness.
Maybe someone can help me out. I’m trying to remember the title of a book and the author. Soon after we moved back to the States, so it was just after 1993, I attended a workshop at The Chapel in Akron, OH near where we lived. The theme for the sessions was “Success in Ministry” and that caught my attention!? How do you know if you have been or are being successful in ministry? What matrix/metric should we use to measure success? Is it numbers, baptisms, the growth curve, the size of the building or the fame of the congregation? I was surprised, pleasantly, to discover the author/speaker pointed us to none of the above. Instead he pointed us to Moses’ example in Numbers 20. In Hebrew, the name of the book of Numbers is actually, literally “in the wilderness”! So the question is how will we function and be successful in the wilderness?
Interestingly, our preacher, Ryan, here in North Carolina, on January 4 in a message entitled “The End of an Era”, pointed to the same text. Here I thought it was the beginning of the year!!(Seriously, look it up in your Bible and see what you have highlighted!) Ryan’s outline was simple: 1) God is holy! 2) We must believe He is holy and treat Him as holy. 3) Believe God is Holy, so that you will treat Him as Holy. Then came this quote that we probably need to underscore: “How you respond under pressure reveals what you truly believe about God!” You see, Numbers 20 is the defining text (or test) for “success in ministry” because Moses failed the test! Note verse 12. “Because you did not trust me enough to demonstrate my holiness to the people of Israel, you will not lead them into the land I am giving them!”
Can we challenge one another in 2026? We will be under pressure from time to time. But let’s decide ahead of time to be faithful to the Father’s call. Let’s demonstrate God’s holiness faithfully and we live as salt and light in this dark world. Here’s to success in ministry in 2026!
