Preachers or Waiters?

You’ve probably seen it before. A minister starts off on fire, preaching the gospel, making disciples, and then—boom!—they’re running a food program, a relief fund, or a rescue mission. Before long, teachings are replaced with sermons on supply chain logistics, and their prayer time is spent writing proposals for donations.  They even write a book about it and market it to raise funds for the charity work.


Don’t get me wrong—charity is good. But when charity becomes the ministry, that's off and we then have a problem. A problem that the early church faced and overcame.


In Acts 6:2-7, the apostles had a real issue. The church was growing, widows needed food, and complaints were flying in. But when faced with this crisis, the apostles made a shocking statement:  


"It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables." (Acts 6:2)


Wait—did they just say it’s not right to serve tables? Is charity now bad? Not at all! But it’s not right if it distracts ministers from their core calling: teaching the Word and seeking God in prayer.


So, what did they do? They delegated! They appointed seven Spirit-filled men to handle the issue so they could keep the main thing the main thing. And guess what?  

"So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith." (Acts 6:7)  


The work thrived because ministers continued equipping the saints for the work of ministry, and deacons served.


This isn't a new struggle. Even Moses found himself in a similar situation—spending his whole day solving disputes among the Israelites (Exodus 18:13-26). Enter Jethro, his wise father-in-law, with some tough love:  


"What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out." (Exodus 18:17-18)  


Moses, like many ministers today, was doing good work but in a bad way. Jethro told him to hand over the smaller cases to trustworthy men so he could focus on hearing from God and leading the people.  


And let’s not forget Jesus' frustration with the crowd in John 6:26. After feeding the five thousand, people kept following Him—but for all the wrong reasons.  


"Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill." (John 6:26)  


They wanted food but not the Bread of Life. And isn't that a warning to us? If we’re not careful, we can spend so much time feeding stomachs that we forget to feed souls. 


So, What’s the Takeaway?

- Charity is good, but it's not ministry.

- If you’re in the fivefold, prioritize prayer and the Word.

- Delegate where you can—don’t let urgent things replace important things.

- Be cautious: people will love what you give them more than the God you preach. Don’t let that shape your ministry.  


At the end of the day, it’s not about stopping charity—it’s about stopping distractions. Let charity support ministry, not replace it.  


Keep the main thing the main thing. Discipleship is the main thing.



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