It saddens my spirit to observe how much time and effort that ministers of every kind take to try to prove their position in God by referring to their haters and to their being rejected because of their uniqueness.
So much of their persecution is just imaginary. It's self exaltation. I know this to be true because of how often I hear Holy Spirit make reference to God's rebuke to Elijah when he said, "I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; because the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life"(1 King 19:14). Well, God's response to him was "Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him"
(1Kings 19:18).
The world is too big, and the Kingdom is too vast for any of us to think that we are "the cat's meow" in the things of God. Just serve the Lord well in what He has anointed and appointed you to do, and cheer on the rest of the team/body. Every part of the body is necessary! Regardless to how anointed or unique your ministry is you cannot carry the Kingdom on your back. That's Jesus' place!
Also, the other popular idiom that many are using is that they don't care what anybody thinks or says about them but God. I know that they think that this is a very noble statement and stance to take, but surely it is not because in order to take that stance you will have to negate most of Jesus' teachings which were how to relate to each other...your brother, your parents, your neighbor, your spiritual leaders, civic leaders and even sinners.
What class have you placed yourself in if no one is right but you...and if you can't be critiqued? Being misunderstood is one thing. That's par for the course, but becoming arrogant about it is something else.
These attitudes are just the opposite lessons that the Lord has taken a lifetime to craft in me, especially the last 35 years out of my 68 years. I was admonished to "crucify flesh and to die daily"...to decrease that He may increase in me"...to "draw nigh to Him that He may draw nigh to me"...to " love my neighbor as myself"...to"think on the things of others higher than myself"...
We all have opportunities in our lives where we must decide to "obey God rather than man," while at the same time modeling Christ to the world. You see His brand of Power equals Love. He humbled Himself in order to fulfill His mission (Study The Humiliation of Christ or Kenosis).
Philippians 2:6-8 says, "Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7)But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8)And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death on the cross."
At every stage of elevation in Kingdom matters, Father has sent a message for me to "Stay humble." Recently, I was sent before a great assembly of God's people, leaders from various disciplines, through whom Holy Spirit spoke mightily concerning who I am to the Kingdom of God. My charge in the Kingdom might or might not ever be widely revealed in the earth, but Heaven and hell knows who I am, and that's how Father told me to live. For a couple of weeks before I left for that particular event, a couple of our team members (in their twenties) were assigned to pray for me and over me each day, and a few days before I left each of them called me separately with a message to "Stay humble."
Humbleness comes with a great price, but it can be attained through a constant awareness of "Christ in us."
Stay encouraged and be steadfast in your call but more importantly in your relationship with the Lord and His body, and He will "exalt you in due season" without the efforts of a PR team or any attention getting techniques.
Your times are in the Lord's hand!
