Muddy Boots: The Mess Is Where Ministry Happens

by Dave Miller

We want finished products without the mess. We want the clean kitchen, not the dirty dishes. We want the meal on the table without the chopping, the burning, and the long learning process that makes a good cook. Today, many people do not cook much anymore because it takes time and skill. It is easier to pay someone else to do the work. We enjoy the result while someone else handles the mess.

That approach works in many parts of life. It does not work the same way in the Kingdom of God.

When we outsource everything, we begin to believe that results matter more than process. We forget that growth usually happens in the middle of the work, not at the end. In a CoVocational life, where faith and work are woven together, this misunderstanding becomes a serious problem. If you follow Jesus in the marketplace, your job is not just a way to earn money. It is a field. It is soil. It is a place where people struggle, learn, fail, and grow.

Soil is not clean. It stains your hands and clings to your boots. Yet that is exactly where ministry happens.

We often say that we want the harvest. We want changed lives, strong leaders, and healthy cultures. But harvest does not appear without dirt. The hard conversation is ministry. The awkward meeting is ministry. The employee who keeps making mistakes is ministry. The customer who tests your patience is ministry. These moments feel messy because they require time, humility, and courage. However, they are not interruptions to the mission. They are the mission.

In CoVocational leadership, your workplace becomes holy ground. It is holy not because it feels spiritual, but because it is real. Real people bring real pressure. Real pressure reveals real character. God uses that pressure to shape both you and the people around you.

We avoid the mess because it makes us uncomfortable. When you cook from scratch, you might ruin the recipe. When you mentor someone, they might disappoint you. When you lead, you will see your own weaknesses more clearly than ever before. Outsourcing hides weakness, but presence exposes it. Even so, exposure is what builds strength.

God often forms our character through the very situations we try to avoid. He builds patience through slow progress. He grows humility through failure. He deepens love through conflict. If we remove the mess, we remove the formation.

There is also freedom in this truth. You are not responsible for the final results. You cannot force someone to change. You cannot control every outcome. You cannot guarantee a harvest. Those results belong to the Lord. Your responsibility is faithfulness. You must show up, stay engaged, and act with integrity in the middle of the dirt.

Muddy boots are not a sign of failure. They are a sign of obedience. They show that you stepped into the field instead of watching from a distance. In the Kingdom of God, clean shoes may look impressive, but muddy boots tell the real story. The mess is not in the way of ministry. The mess is where ministry happens.