Moyosore first went to the camp as a volunteer on a Saturday in 2016. A pastor named Habib had started a small outreach to children living in a settlement for displaced families on the outskirts of Abuja. Most of the families had fled violence in the north-east. Habib had begun with a mat, a blackboard and a pot of rice, and by the time Moyosore arrived there were three classrooms made of corrugated iron, a feeding programme and about two hundred children who called him Baba.
She was twenty-six, a graduate in business administration who had not yet found work she loved. Within a year she had resigned from her bank job and become the outreach’s first administrator. Habib was a man of enormous warmth and vision. He was also, as she put it gently, “a man who lived in the future and left the present to God.” He would promise a donor a new classroom on Monday and forget to tell her until Thursday. He would ask her to handle something and then handle it himself without saying so. For the first two years she spent almost as much energy trying to work out what her job was as she spent doing it.
Over time they learned to work together. She wrote out a one-page description of her responsibilities and asked him to correct it. They began meeting every Monday morning for half an hour with a notebook. She learned to say, “Pastor, I cannot do both by Friday. Which one matters more?” He learned to listen. The outreach grew to six hundred children, two feeding points and a foreign foundation that covered most of the salaries.
Then, in her eighth year, the government relocated part of the settlement. Hundreds of families moved to another site an hour away, and enrolment dropped to three hundred and forty. The foundation’s annual report was due in three weeks. The renewal of the grant, and with it the salaries of eleven teachers, depended on it.
Late one evening Habib came into her office and closed the door. He looked tired. “Put six hundred in the report,” he said. “And adjust the registers to match. We will be back to six hundred by next year. God knows our hearts.”
Moyosore went home and did not sleep.
What do you do when you have given years of your life to serving someone else’s vision, and that person asks you to do something wrong? And how do you serve faithfully in the long ordinary years before that moment comes, so that you are ready for it?
Serving what belongs to another
Much of the best work in the kingdom of God is done by people serving a vision that God first gave to someone else. Every ministry needs administrators, assistants, associate pastors, deacons, volunteers, accountants, drivers and teachers who give their gifts to carry another person’s assignment. There is nothing second-class about that calling. It is one of the most Christlike things a believer can do.
Paul paid one of the warmest tributes in his letters to a man who had spent years doing exactly that. Writing from prison, he told the Philippians that he hoped to send Timothy to them soon, and explained why: “For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state” (Philippians 2:20). The word naturally means genuinely, sincerely. Timothy’s concern for the believers was real. It was not a performance put on to impress his mentor.
Then Paul says something sobering about the people around him: “For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s” (Philippians 2:21). Serving alongside a leader brings constant temptations to seek your own: your recognition, your advancement, your platform. Timothy had resisted them. And Paul adds, “But ye know the proof of him, that, as a son with the father, he hath served with me in the gospel” (Philippians 2:22).
Notice the little word with. Timothy served with Paul in the gospel. Paul did not describe him as a tool or a subordinate. He was a son working alongside his father in the family business, and the business belonged to neither of them. It was “the gospel.” Paul elsewhere calls him “my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 4:17), and he opens this very letter with the words “Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:1). Both men were servants. Both answered to the same Master.
PunchlineThat is the foundation for serving another person’s vision well. You serve the leader, and you serve with him, because both of you serve Christ. Your loyalty to the leader is real, but it is held inside a larger loyalty.
Loyalty that chooses to stay
The book of Ruth begins with three widows on a road. Naomi, bitter and bereaved, is returning to Bethlehem. She urges her two Moabite daughters-in-law to go home to their own families. Orpah, after many tears, does so. Ruth refuses:
And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.
Ruth’s words are some of the most beautiful expressions of loyalty in all literature. She binds her future to Naomi’s: her home, her people, her burial place. Naomi had nothing to offer. She was old, poor and returning to a town that had forgotten her. Ruth was choosing to serve a future that was not, in any obvious sense, her own.
But notice the centre of her vow. “Thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.” Ruth’s loyalty to Naomi was bound up with a turning to Naomi’s God. In binding herself to Naomi, she was placing herself under the LORD, and she sealed the vow in His name. That is what made her loyalty steady. It rested on something larger than Naomi’s moods or fortunes.
Ruth’s faithfulness showed itself in work. She went out to glean in the fields, in the heat, among strangers, to feed her mother-in-law. Boaz later said to her, “It hath fully been shewed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother in law” (Ruth 2:11). Her loyalty had become visible through ordinary, daily labour.
And notice how Naomi responded. Later, she said to Ruth, “My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?” (Ruth 3:1). The leader cared about the welfare of the one who served her. When Naomi gave counsel, Ruth answered, “All that thou sayest unto me I will do” (Ruth 3:5). That readiness to follow was wise because the counsel was for her good, and nothing in it required her to dishonour God. Healthy loyalty grows best where it runs both ways.
Heartily, as to the Lord
Paul gave instructions to bondservants in the church at Colossae that have shaped how Christians think about work ever since:
And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.
We should be careful with the context. Paul was addressing people living within the Roman system of slavery, a system Scripture never commends as God’s design. His concern was to show believers caught inside it how to live with dignity and faith. The principle he gives, though, reaches every believer who works under another person’s direction.
“Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily.” The phrase literally means “from the soul.” Paul wants work done with the whole person engaged, without the grudging minimum. Just before this he warns against “eyeservice,” working hard only when the supervisor is watching. Faithfulness to another person’s vision includes the work nobody checks: the receipts filed properly, the email answered, the classroom swept after the visitors have gone.
“As to the Lord, and not unto men.” Here is the secret of serving another person’s vision without resentment. You are ultimately serving Christ. The leader may notice your work or not. He may thank you or forget. “Of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.” Your reward does not depend on his memory.
But there is a second implication, and it matters greatly. If you are serving “as to the Lord,” then the Lord’s standards govern your service. You cannot do something for Christ that Christ forbids. Paul’s next verse says, “But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons” (Colossians 3:25). No human instruction can make wrongdoing acceptable before Him. And Paul immediately turns to those in authority: “Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven” (Colossians 4:1). The leader, too, is under Christ.
So the same passage that calls you to wholehearted service also sets its limits. You work heartily, because you work for the Lord. And you refuse what the Lord forbids, for exactly the same reason.
NuggetServing “as to the Lord” is both the source of wholehearted service and the boundary around it. You cannot do for Christ what Christ forbids.
Clear roles and honest words
Much of the pain in shared ministry comes from confusion. A volunteer does not know what is expected of her. An assistant pastor is never sure which decisions are his to make. A leader assumes his team understands his intentions without ever explaining them. Resentment grows in the gaps.
Faithful service needs clear responsibilities. If you serve someone else’s vision, ask for clarity about your role. What exactly am I responsible for? Who decides what? To whom do I report? What does success look like? Write it down and ask the leader to confirm or correct it. Far from being disloyal, it makes sure your loyalty is directed at the right things.
It also needs honest communication. “Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another” (Ephesians 4:25). In a ministry team that means saying when you are overloaded instead of silently failing. It means raising a problem early, while it is small, instead of hoping it disappears. It means giving the leader accurate information even when it is unwelcome. A team member who only brings good news is not serving the vision. He is protecting himself.
And it means keeping your communication straight. Jesus said, “But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay” (Matthew 5:37). Do not say yes to the leader’s face and no behind his back. If you disagree with a decision, say so to the person who made it, respectfully and with reasons. Then, if the matter is one of judgement and not of conscience, cooperate wholeheartedly with the decision once it is made. Many decisions in ministry are matters on which reasonable people differ. Faithful servants can lose those arguments graciously.
Leaders carry responsibility here too. Explain your thinking. Give people authority to match their responsibility. Thank them specifically. Pay fairly and on time where people are employed. Listen when they tell you something hard. A leader who punishes honesty will soon be surrounded by people who tell him only what he wants to hear.
Onesiphorus and the loyalty of hard seasons
When Paul wrote his last letter, he was in a Roman prison, probably facing execution. Many had abandoned him. “All they which are in Asia be turned away from me” (2 Timothy 1:15), he wrote, naming two of them. Later in the letter he adds that “Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world” (2 Timothy 4:10). Then, against that dark background, he remembers one man:
The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain: But, when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me . The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day: and in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus, thou knowest very well.
Onesiphorus “oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain.” Visiting a prisoner accused of a capital crime was dangerous. To be seen with Paul could bring suspicion on Onesiphorus himself. But when he came to Rome, he “sought me out very diligently, and found me.” He searched. In a vast city, with Paul held who knows where, he kept looking until he found his friend.
And Paul adds that Timothy already knew “in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus.” This was not a single heroic visit. Onesiphorus had served faithfully for years, in many quiet ways, and when the hard season came he simply kept serving.
Loyalty is easy when the vision is growing and the leader is admired. It is tested when the ministry struggles, when the leader is criticised, or when association with him costs you something. Onesiphorus shows us loyalty that stays through the chain. Notice, though, that Paul’s chain was for the gospel. Onesiphorus was standing with a faithful man suffering for righteousness. That is a very different thing from standing with a leader who is suffering the consequences of his own wrongdoing.
Jonathan: loyalty with a conscience
No one in Scripture shows the tension of loyalty more clearly than Jonathan. He was Saul’s son, heir to the throne and a commander in his father’s army. He was loyal to his father to the end; he died beside him in battle on Mount Gilboa. Yet he also loved David, and when Saul resolved to kill David, Jonathan faced an impossible choice. Listen to what he did:
And Jonathan spake good of David unto Saul his father, and said unto him, Let not the king sin against his servant, against David; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his works have been to thee-ward very good: For he did put his life in his hand, and slew the Philistine, and the LORD wrought a great salvation for all Israel: thou sawest it , and didst rejoice: wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause?
Jonathan spoke to his father directly. He did not plot behind Saul’s back or stir up the army against him. He went to the king and told him the truth: “Let not the king sin against his servant.” He reminded Saul of the facts, David’s faithfulness and the victory God had given through him. And he named the wrong plainly: “wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood?”
On that occasion Saul listened and swore that David would not be killed (1 Samuel 19:6). Later, when Jonathan defended David again, Saul’s response was very different. He “cast a javelin at him to smite him” (1 Samuel 20:33). Jonathan’s honesty cost him dearly.
What did Jonathan refuse to do? He refused to take part in his father’s sin. He would not help hunt down an innocent man, and he warned David to escape. What did he continue to do? He continued to honour his father, to serve in his army and finally to die at his side. David later sang that “Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided” (2 Samuel 1:23).
Jonathan shows us that loyalty and conscience are not enemies. A faithful servant can honour a leader, serve his vision, speak truthfully to him and still refuse to participate in wrongdoing. Real loyalty sometimes looks exactly like Jonathan standing before the throne saying, “Let not the king sin.”
When you must refuse
There comes a point in some situations where loyalty to a leader collides directly with obedience to God. The apostles reached that point before the Sanhedrin, the highest religious authority of their nation. Ordered to stop preaching in the name of Jesus, they answered:
Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.
“We ought to obey God rather than men.” Notice the manner of their refusal. They did not riot. They did not slander the council or deny its authority in other matters. They stated their position calmly, accepted the beating that followed, and left “rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name” (Acts 5:41). Their refusal was respectful, clear and costly.
The Hebrew midwives in Egypt had done the same centuries earlier. Commanded by Pharaoh to kill newborn boys, they “feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them” (Exodus 1:17). Some commands must be disobeyed, whoever gives them.
What might that look like in ministry? You cannot be required to lie, to falsify records or reports, to misuse money given for a particular purpose, to conceal abuse, to deceive donors or members, to break the law, or to harm anyone. If a leader asks you to do any of these things, your faithfulness to God requires you to refuse. Where it is possible, refuse respectfully and offer an honest alternative. Keep a clear record of what was asked. Where the matter is serious, raise it with those to whom the leader is accountable, such as a board, elders or trustees. Where a crime has been committed or someone is in danger, the proper authorities must be informed, and protecting people comes first. You may sometimes need to leave.
We should also be careful not to use Acts 5:29 as a weapon in ordinary disagreements. Most differences in a ministry team are about strategy, timing, priorities or style. On such matters, the faithful servant states his view and then supports the decision. Acts 5:29 is for the moments when obedience to a person would mean disobedience to God. Treating every disagreement as a matter of conscience makes teamwork impossible and cheapens a sacred principle.
It also helps to recognise the pressures that make refusal so hard, because they rarely arrive looking like temptation. One is gratitude. “After all I have done for you” is a powerful sentence, especially in a culture that rightly honours those who have helped us. But gratitude to a leader is a debt of love and respect. It never becomes a debt that can be paid in sin. Another is spiritual language. “God knows our hearts.” “We are doing it for the children.” “Do not let the devil use you to stop this work.” Words like these can make wrongdoing sound like faith. A third is genuine concern for others. Habib was not greedy; he was frightened for eleven teachers and their families. That kind of fear feels noble, and it is exactly why it is dangerous. “The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe” (Proverbs 29:25).
And if you do have to refuse, guard your own heart. Refuse without contempt. You are not the leader’s judge, and you may one day need the same mercy. The aim is to protect the work and the people, and if possible to help the leader turn back, never to enjoy his embarrassment.
Faithfulness that is passed on
Near the end of his life, Paul wrote to Timothy and reminded him of what he had seen through all their years together:
But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me.
“Thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, Persecutions, afflictions.” Timothy had served another man’s vision for many years, and in doing so he had absorbed far more than tasks. He had watched how Paul taught, how he lived, how he suffered and how God delivered him. Now Timothy was leading the church in Ephesus himself, and Paul charged him, “keep that which is committed to thy trust” (1 Timothy 6:20).
That is often how God forms leaders. Years of serving another person’s vision become the training ground for carrying responsibility of your own. Ruth, who had bound her life to an empty-handed widow, lived to see Naomi take her baby son into her arms. The neighbours said, “There is a son born to Naomi” (Ruth 4:17). Ruth’s faithfulness had given Naomi a future, and the child, Obed, became the grandfather of David. Timothy became a pastor of pastors. Those who serve faithfully, with integrity and conscience intact, are being prepared for what God will entrust to them next. And whatever they carry next, they will carry it as servants of Jesus Christ.
The morning after Habib’s request, Moyosore arrived at the office early and typed a report. She gave the true figure of three hundred and forty children. She explained the relocation, attached the government notice, described the plan to open a learning centre at the new site, and set out a realistic target for the following year. Then she knocked on Habib’s door.
“Pastor,” she said, “I have served this vision for eight years, and I will keep serving it. But I cannot put six hundred in that report or change the registers. It would be a lie, and I love this work too much to build it on a lie.” She put the draft on his desk. “This is what I think we should send.”
PunchlineHe was angry. “After everything we have done together, you are calling me a thief?” She said, “No, Pastor. I am asking you not to become one.” Then she went back to her desk, shaking.
For three days he barely spoke to her. On the fourth morning he came to her office, placed the signed report on her desk and sat down heavily. “I was afraid for the teachers,” he said. “I let fear make the decision. Thank you for not letting me.”
The foundation reduced the grant by a third that year. They had to close one feeding point for six months, and it was painful. But the programme officer wrote that the honesty of the report was the reason the foundation had chosen to continue at all. Two years later, enrolment was back above five hundred.
At a staff meeting some time afterwards, Habib told the story himself. “That week,” he said, “Moyosore served this vision better than I did.” She has thought about that sentence many times since. Serving another person’s vision faithfully had meant giving it her best years. It had also meant, on one evening, refusing to let it be corrupted. Both were the same faithfulness, offered to the same Lord.
Teaching Companion
For Reflection
- Whose vision are you currently serving? What would it look like to serve it as Timothy did, with genuine care and “as a son with the father”?
- Are your responsibilities in that setting clear? What conversation might you need to have to make them clearer?
- When you disagree with a leader, do you tend to stay silent, complain to others, or speak directly to the person concerned?
- How do you distinguish between a disagreement of judgement, where you should cooperate, and a matter of conscience, where you must refuse?
- If you lead others, do the people serving with you feel free to tell you the truth?
This Week
If you serve within someone else’s ministry or organisation, write a one-page description of your responsibilities as you understand them this week, and ask your leader to review it with you. Use the conversation to raise one honest concern you have been carrying. If you lead others, ask two people who serve with you, “Is there anything you have hesitated to tell me?” Listen without defending yourself, and thank them.
A Prayer
Lord Jesus, You are the Master I serve in every task. Thank You for the leaders You have placed in my life and for the privilege of serving the work You have given them. Make me faithful like Timothy, loyal like Ruth, and steadfast like Onesiphorus in hard seasons. Give me courage like Jonathan to speak the truth when a leader is about to do wrong, and grace to cooperate gladly where the matter is one of judgement. Keep my conscience clear before You. Let me do all things heartily, as to You, knowing that from You I shall receive the reward. In Your name, Amen.
Truth received brings freedom. Truth believed establishes the heart.
Scripture quotations are from the King James Version. · Illustrations using first names only are composites unless stated otherwise.