One, Undivided, Unified...

I've spent a lot of my 7 years at Grace trying to understand the complexities of our church; like all organizations, we are complex. One principle that Pastor Young impressed on me that I've refused to let go is that we are one ministry. We are one church, with a multitude of ministries that you likely will find in many churches (children's programs, youth group, adult groups, Sunday School, music groups, etc., etc.). We are one church that also has a daycare and a Christian School ministry. While these two ministries are substantial in size, they are ministries of the church.

We are one staff. The common attender is really only exposed to a small percentage of our entire staff. We have some 15 employees that are primarily devoted to what I call the traditional church ministries. But we have 20 some employees that work in our daycare ministry and some 50 employees that work in the Christian School ministry. Though we serve in different ministry segments and serve at different times, we are all one staff.

We share one building and all the resources that go with it. God has blessed our minsitry with tremendous resources. We strive to share the resources as a way toward better stewardship of what God has bestowed on us. Take a peek in one of the Early Childhood rooms on a Sunday morning and see how well those kids share toys - yeah, it's not always a picnic. But as we work through the challenges of sharing, we see God using us to reach people for Christ.

"The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body... Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sease of smell be?... The eye cannot say to the hand, "I do not need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!" 1 Corinthians 12:12, 14-17, 21

If people matter to God, the chairs must too!

I've assisted with numerous chair setups in the Grace Auditorium. I enjoy the satisfaction of seeing those 700+ chairs in their neat rows ready for the next event; the sense of accomplishment. There have been some extra chair setup challenges that I recall...

• The phone rang at around 7:30 one Sunday morning with the news that the chairs were not setup and services started at 9:15. Several others responded to the pleas for help and we had the chairs setup in time for the morning worship.
• The crew to setup chairs for a wedding didn't arrive and we had only 1 hour to have the Auditorium setup for the ceremony.

Regardless of the circumstances, it ultimately works out in the end.

I notice stiffness in my back now when I setup and take down the chairs and there is no question there are more glamorous areas of our ministry, but our services would be greatly impacted if we didn't have chairs on Sunday morning. Chair setup is a labor intensive, time consuming part of our ministry that has few visible rewards. But that's just it, there are rewards, they're just invisible. Maybe we need to view chair setup in a different light. As I've been writing this, the thought occurred to me that next time I setup chairs, I could pray for the person that will sit in each chair as I set it up.

Maybe we need to view chair setup as preparing holy ground?

Has your ministry become a ball & chain?

In the past several weeks I know of two individuals who had reached the point where they wanted to back away from the volunteer positions they had held for almost two years. In talking with them, I got the sense that they felt guilty for wanting to back out, yet circumstances in their lives were necessitating the change. I think their example is typical of most volunteers, but I think we need to modify our perspective.

Volunteer positions are not lifetime commitments. I oversee several volunteer positions that require a substantial amount of hours on a weekly basis. I attempt to talk with those volunteers at least once a year about whether their ministry interests are still in the role they are filling currently. At times I even ask blunty if they are tired of their role.

Ministry leaders need to accept that the interests, schedules and commitments of volunteers change and change quite frequently. If a father suddenly realizes that he's overcommitted his time to the point that he has little time to spend with his family, we have to support, if not encourage him to scale back. And if he decides that his church responsibility is one of the cuts, we should praise him for making the choice.

Volunteers need to recognize the same point from a different perspective. If they reach an overcommited state, they need to reevaluate. If they determine that their church responsibility is one of the cuts, they shouldn't feel guilty - it's part of life.

Which is my first priority, to be a husband or to be a Business Manager? My first priority is to be a husband. I understand that my Business Manager responsibility is important and that I'm obligated to meet the standards in my job description. Hopefully, I am able to plan and manage both responsibilities that I maintain the priorities in order while serving both roles with excellence. But if ever I fail in that regard and am unable to regain the balance, the Business Manager responsibilities would have to go. Yeah, that would be a tough choice since I love what I do. And yes, I feel God has lead me to that role, but I am convinced He views my role as a husband to be greater than my role as a Business Manager. The same is true of volunteers. While God can and often does do amazing things through our ministries and therefore through volunteers, He is first and foremost concerned about our responsibilities to our family. Volunteers should not feel guilty when they decide they will no longer serve. In addition to time commitments, there are other reasons volunteers may need to consider getting out of a ministry.

Volunteer positions are best filled by people who have a passion for that role. Out of desperation we often fill needs with anyone we can find, but in the long run that approach denegrades the ministry of the church and the quality of life of the individual. It's a huge challenge, but as ministry leaders, I think we need to resist our desperate need to fill holes until we feel we have the right people for the responsibility. It's not fair to the volunteer, to the ministry or to those to whom we are trying to minister.

My hope is that the ministries of Grace Church are comprised of volunteers who are in roles they love and have their priorities in order - and that we as a staff/as a church fully support and encourage one another as we change roles and positions. Don't let your ministry become a ball & chain.