Firstly, we need to be very clear that there is a difference between motivational speaking and biblical preaching. On my previous blog, I tried to share a bit of my understanding.
One thing we can say, motivational speaking has become quite predominant even in the church. Personally, I don’t know if this is necessarily a good thing because it seemingly has replaced true biblical teachings and preaching. This happens to the extent where people are now easily offended by the Truth of God’s Word and settling for a tickling ear motivation telling us that Jesus died to make us rich and it is okay to settle in our sins.
I am a firm believer that the Word needs no addition or subtraction (Revelations 22:18 and Deuteronomy 4:2 warns against this). I also know that we won’t grow on motivational speeches but doctrinal teachings are necessary to keep us grounded when the storms of life occur. The Word of God is not about encouragement only – it will correct us and challenge us to live a holy life to please God and become more like Jesus Christ.
Hebrew 4:12 – “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
I needed to get this clear and out of the way…
In early 2016, I was going through a very rough season – ministry as I know it was being attacked, my character and motives were constantly being criticized. It’s crazy because when I was referred to as a preacher, I struggled with feelings of inadequacy because I thought I didn’t know the Bible enough; and when I was referred to as a motivational speaker, I felt horrible because it was in a way to put me down saying I wasn’t being led by God to speak. Yes, it was crazy! I remember crying so often because I didn’t know what I was supposed to be – motivational speaker or preacher. I knew that God was leading me to share my story and inspire others to turn to Christ because He truly transforms lives. But there were times I was invited to a school or even doing corporate events and it wasn’t to talk about God but to motivate others. So I felt torn.
I spoke to a few pastors and mentors about how I felt and they told me that I needed to continue to seek God on what He is calling me to do.
From that season, this was what I learnt:
- Yes, a Christian can be a motivational speaker. According to Sokanu.com, “the ultimate goal of a motivational speaker is to change people profoundly on an emotional and/or mental level, and to help them make some kind of professional or personal change in their lives and within themselves. People naturally tend to focus on all their problems, and the motivational speaker will help an audience to focus on the many opportunities instead, by using any number of persuasive speech tactics to inspire and motivate.”
A motivational speaker can do this in an organization, school, networking, business or social events. Just like a lawyer, doctor or teacher who is a Christian is hired for a specific job; so can a motivational speaker who is a Christian may be hired for this specific task also.
- The gift of exhortation is a spiritual gift given to believers. This is also referred to as the gift of encouragement. An exhorter encourages believers to mature in Christ and grow spiritually. This is one of my main gifts so I’ve done extensive research on this gift because I realize I’ve always been that person that sees the best in everyone and try to find an opportunity in every situation. I love to inspire and encourage others. When I learnt this was a gift from God, it gave me such peace. When you are operating in this gift, people will consider it motivational speaking.
- A Pastor said to me, so what if you are a motivational speaker? Don’t we need more Christians motivating others? Don’t we need more Christian encouraging people to turn to Christ since there are so many people telling them about the “universe”? He asked me why I was so affected by a “title” and showed me that it was simple people-pleasing I was struggling with, trying to be loved and accepted by everyone. This could be a similar case for you, if this is something you are also struggling with. At the end of the day, we should be glorifying God in ALL that we do. We don’t need to call His name but they will know we are Christians by our fruit (love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, goodness etc. ).
So, I hope this blog encourages you to get into the Word so you can grow closer to God and know His Truth about your life. In this world, people will always have an opinion and I’m not suggesting that you shouldn’t be open to correction if you are going the wrong way. However, don’t allow the opinions of everyone to cripple you. Always seek His opinion above all.