Brian Cropp: Good morning. If you’re joining with us for the first time, we have been in a series of messages called, True to Real, and we’ve been looking specifically at seven summary statements that we see in the Bible that talk about how you and I can relate to one another according to God’s ways and also how we can team together as a church, according to God’s ways, to do the mission that God has asked of us. We call those summary statements Heart Attitudes, and we’ve defined a Heart Attitude as “ a mental and emotional preset that we use to approach people and situations that we deal with in life.” So far in this series, we’ve looked at the first four attitudes, and if you’ve missed any of those previous messages, I encourage you to go check those out. I think that will be a help to you.
Today, we’re going to move from the personal relationships to organizational relationships, specifically looking at Heart Attitude number five called “Participate in the ministry.” Now, words over time, some words, take on unintentional definitions and get raised up to a lofty position that they really don’t deserve. Ministry is one of those words. Ministry really just means “serve.” So, another way you could state this Heart Attitude is “Do your part in the church.” There are several verses and passages in the Bible that speak to this idea, but if you’re looking for a core verse to study and memorize, it would be 1 Peter 4:10-11. It’s listed on your listening guide.
I’m going to read it out loud. If you would like to read it out loud with me, that would be fun. If you’re watching this in a public place, that would be hilarious, if you just read it out loud from wherever you are. Let’s go. Let’s do this. “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God’s varied grace...in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.”
Now, a little bit about me and my story when it comes to the Heart Attitude of participating in the ministry. When I grew up, my family went to church all the time. My dad was a deacon in the church. My mom, for a time, was the treasurer. Those of us who could sing sang in the choir. My brother and I were very involved in the student ministry. We were that family that whenever the church doors were open we were at church. At the same time, participating in the ministry was not a value that I had. I was just tossed into the car along with my family to do the things that we needed to do. Well, that was back in the 1980’s and the 1990’s. Fast forward in my life to the year 2001. I have just married my wife, Glenda, and we have just started attending Hope Church. And, I had recently graduated from seminary.
My seminary experience—I was a little burnt out with ministry when I left seminary. It wasn’t the seminary’s fault. There were just several personal experiences that I had while I was at seminary that had left me kind of burnt out on the whole serving in church idea. Now Glenda was raring to go! She wanted to get her hands dirty and get to serving. In a way to please my new bride, she and I taught in our kids’ ministry for a time together, but frankly my heart really wasn’t in it. I didn't want to serve anywhere. I especially didn’t want to serve in our worship service. I didn’t want to sing. I didn’t want to play an instrument. I didn’t want to do anything on stage, like dramas and skits and that kind of thing, which is a part of my background and schooling. I didn’t want to do anything with mixing sound or running PowerPoint. I wanted just to show up to church like a regular person and not have to worry about who’s in tune and who’s out of tune and which cues are getting met and missed and all of those things. I just wanted to be at church.
Well, there was one thing that was true at that time of Hope’s history that is not as true now, and that is that there was a lot of chair stacking. The room that meet at in person at 1750 Beach Street is a multi-purpose room. We have banquets and dances and worship services and concerts and all kinds of things. So, the furniture in here gets moved around quite a bit. There was a lot of chair stacking. I used to think that that was the base minimum for membership—just knowing how to stack chairs in our town hall. It was something that I could do. I really wasn’t that interested in serving, but I had two hands and could stack some chairs. While stacking chairs, I also got to know people, and they got to know me just a little bit.
It was a way for me to sort of get into motion with serving and participating in the ministry. Then, I ended up in a certain kind of group. It was a specialized group that had some assignments attached to it. One of those assignments, in order to stay in the group, was to be part of some Sunday morning serving team. Again, I wasn’t that interested. I wanted the base minimum, so I started serving on the cassette and CD duplication team. That’s how old this story is. If you don’t know what a cassette or a CD is, here’s a picture of them. There was nothing to prepare for to serve on this team. There was nothing to do until the message was presented. Then, we duplicated them, and then, I couldn’t take the stuff home, so it was easy to leave. It was just an easy place to serve.
Then, one Sunday as it turns out in the technical booth in the back of our town hall, somebody was gone—the person who was doing PowerPoint. I can’t remember now if they just weren’t able to be there that day or they got sick in the middle of the morning, but they were not there. There was a need for someone to just advance the slides on our screens. Again, I have fingers, and I sort of knew how PowerPoint worked, and I could advance the slides. Now, there is a longer story that gets from moving PowerPoint slides to where I am the staff person responsible for all of the things that happen in town hall in regard to our worship service, where I’m over all of the singing and the instruments and the videos and the sound and the PowerPoint and all that stuff.
I really do enjoy what I do, both as a job and also how I get to contribute to the work of the church. Not every serving opportunity leads to a spot where at some point you are serving on church staff. But, everyone has a story about how participating in the ministry has meant different things to them. I had the opportunity to sit down with several of our Hope members over Zoom and talk about how that Heart Attitude has impacted them and has been a benefit to their family. I want you to hear from them, so check out this video. (Video begins)
Kurt & Lydia Laughbaum: “I’ll just tell you a story. Lydia and I, when we first got involved/when she first came to Hope, she immediately started working with the kids. Whenever we started dating and then got married, we both got involved with teaching in Sunday school. So basically, we’ve been in NRG Zone since this. This was like the late 80’s. We took a little break, like a 2-year break, so that’s one thing. Participating—Finding out what your abilities are, and boy, you can really see the benefit of 30 or 40 years of commitment to something. Plus, you can see men and women now that are leading families that you had a part of their life early on. When we first got married, we were teaching 2 and 3 year olds. In that class was John Mark. There were a bunch of boys. There were about eight boys and one girl, maybe two girls. But, John Mark and Camrann Coker were like this (does a fighting motion), and every week, they were cute. Two little blonde-headed boys like bam, bam, bam—they were fighting each other and wrestling. It was just fun. Now, they’re buds, Camrann and John Mark. It’d be nice to see them fight now. That’d be a pretty good fight.”
Brian: “They’ve got their own kids.”
Kurt & Lydia: “Yes, that’s right. But, there were other guys, too—Aaron Meinen, just a whole crew of guys, and Brad and Jonathan and Alison. These are women and men that now are leaders and a part of Hope.”
Jon Holiday: “So, I’ve always been very involved. My wife has always been very involved. That just sort of naturally allows my child to also be very involved. Every time there was something going on or that we needed to be a part of, we often helped out with that. Our daughter, I think, has been instilled with those same ideals. She is now an adult. Of course as you mentioned, she’s married and has a son. She serves. Her husband serves. We’re all very into serving. I think that one of the biggest things about that Heart Attitude is understanding. It helps bring an understanding of what that really means and how unusual it is that people just participate in some way. Maybe they have an ability, and that makes it easier to do something in a way that they can use their ability. Maybe it’s something that they even enjoy, but even beyond that, something that participating in some way is great. I have a story that I’d like to share where I’m sort of on the other end of that, where I was someone who was in charge of something. And, I needed some help. This was several years ago, and I was in charge of different things and leading different things. I needed something done for Sunday morning, and I came to realize on Saturday evening that I’m not going to get done. So, I called someone. This was about 11 at night. This was one of my colleagues in that area of ministry, and before I could explain to them what it was that I needed, the answer was, ‘Yes, I’m happy to help.’ Now, that’s a person who also has a grasp of the same idea of participating in the ministry and also putting my needs above their own. Man, that is just so, so helpful and encouraging. Just the mindset of being willing to serve and understanding that it’s just helpful for others and especially when a leader’s in need.”
Elizabeth McWilliams: “We have to make choices. If we’re going to participate in ministry, we might have to make a choice to do that instead of doing this other activity that we wanted to do. It can be challenging with full-time jobs, and we have our farm and our four kiddos, who are now getting old enough to be in music lessons and volleyball and all the activities. So, participating in the ministry has given us something to do together as a family. We try to do it together as much as we can. By that, I mean if Aaron and I have our life group and our kiddos are going to childcare, we’re talking to them. We’re like, “Hey, we’re all participating in the ministry. Y’all are going to play with friends and be a help to the childcare workers. And, you’re participating in the ministry because you’re helping the adults get the training they need.” So, we always try to talk with them about it, so it’s not just here’s another activity that we’re going to go do. It’s not just an activity. It is actually really intentional things that we’re doing to honor the Lord and try to help the mission of God move forward. That’s one thing that we’ve been able to do is do it together, as much as possible. Even when we can’t do it together, those of us who might be at home can help those that are going to participate in the ministry. We can actually be a part of what they’re doing by helping them get there, by cooking them dinner, or by saying I’ll clean up, or something like that. We try to make it a family thing that we’re doing together. It can be stressful sometimes when our time to get home from work and have to eat a quick dinner, so we can go to one thing or another. But, it helps when we can talk to our kids about it and talk to them about why we are participating in the ministry. This is why we’re doing this. This is why we’re going to Hope, or this is why we’re going to help somebody move or whatever we’re doing to honor the Lord and help out the church. It can get busy in different seasons, so we really try to pray and ask the Lord, “Is this something You want us to do, or is this something you don’t want us to do?” If we don’t know, we usually just do it and really trust God. God’s been really faithful to, even in the busy times, to really help our family connect over these things. We’re having this shared experience serving this way, so it has given a lot of meaning to something that could be otherwise just another activity on our schedule.” (Video ends)
Brian Cropp: So for me, starting to apply the value of participating in the ministry started with small, if not reluctant, steps. But, it was what God used to help realign my heart’s attitude toward doing my part in helping the church. The chapter that is in Pastor Harold Bullock’s book on the Heart Attitudes goes into more depth and detail about the nature of serving, who is to serve, why you should serve, and those kinds of things. In your group when you discuss this chapter, you’re going to hear from one another different stories about how participating in the ministry has benefited one another. If you’re not in a group right now, then I encourage you. Get in a group! You get Pastor Harold’s book, which will be a great resource for you over time as you are applying and putting into practice all of the Heart Attitudes. Also, you get to hear from other people and be encouraged by other people as they’re walking with the Lord, so that you can get traction in your spiritual growth. If you’re not in a group, get in a group.
I want to look at a couple of issues that are around this idea of participating in the ministry, so that you can get some better traction in this particular area, especially if you are coming to this idea with the same kind of attitude that I did—very reluctant, burnt out, maybe confused—about serving in the church. The first area of tension that I hear about from time to time is in the area of gifting. The New Testament talks a lot about gifts, spiritual gifts. It teaches that everyone who becomes a follower of Jesus Christ gets at least one spiritual gift, meaning that they are supernaturally endowed with some ability that benefits the church and glorifies God. Even our memory verse this week talks about using these gifts for the church. These spiritual gifts are different from talents and skills and abilities that we have. There are verses in the New Testament about them, but even with all of that, there is still some confusion for us about spiritual gifts.
First of all, there isn’t a complete list. There are several lists in there, but they’re not all the same list. Are there other things, gifts, that aren’t listed? It just gets confusing, maybe. Second, there is no description in the Bible about how all of these gifts should be appropriately applied in the local church. Third, some of the gifts sound exactly like talents and skills and abilities that you have. For example, you may be a fantastic administrator. You have that skill and ability, and then one day, you become a follower of Jesus Christ. You trust Jesus to forgive you of your sins, and you make Him the Boss and the Lord of your life. Then, you start to use your administration in the church.
Now, is that the use of your skills and abilities as an administrator? Or, is that the use of a spiritual gift of administration? I don’t know. The Bible really isn’t clear as to when you’re using your spiritual gift and when you’re using a talent or a skill. That can leave folks stuck or panicked, asking all kinds of questions, like, “What is my spiritual gift?” And, “Am I using it? What if I’m serving outside of my spiritual gifting?” “Am I using it in the way that God wants me to use it?” We get very hyper/worked-up about using our spiritual gifts. So collectively wherever you are, I want you to take a big breath in and let it out. Relax. Just get involved. Trust that God is going to guide your steps. Assuming that your mental and emotional preset is that you want God to guide your steps, then He will put you in the places with opportunities where your spiritual gift is going to be used for His glory and for the benefit of His church.
Ephesians chapter two, verse ten, says, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” If God has prepared them for you, then you are not going to be able to avoid them. Obviously, we can rebel against God, and we can not do what God has asked us to do and miss out on serving and using our gifts in that way. I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about if you’re wanting to obey God and do something for His church, then you are going to be able to use your spiritual gift. He’s going to make those opportunities happen for you.
Now, maybe you’ll recognize it at the time. “Hey! I’m using my spiritual gift right now!” Maybe, you won’t. Maybe, you’re going to look back over the track record of your life and see a pattern and then deduce, “Oh, that must be one of my spiritual gifts.” It may be that somebody comes up to you and says, “I’ve been watching your life over a long time, and I think you might be gifted in this particular area.” As far as I know, it may not be until you are standing before God in heaven that you find out exactly what your spiritual gift is. I really don’t know. The important part is not in knowing what your spiritual gift is. The important part is in doing something. It's often in the doing that our spiritual gifts get discovered and developed and known.
As you serve the church and use your talents, abilities, gifts, whatever, then you are showing love to God because you are honoring the gift that He’s given you. You are giving honor to Him, and you are showing love to the other people who are being beneficiaries of your service and your gifts and abilities. The other area where there often is tension is in life stages. The way my mind works; if I’m moving from one house to another house, I’m going to load up all of my furniture into the truck. I’m going to drive the truck to the new place. We’re going to take all of the furniture out of the truck. It’s going to end up in the new house, and that’s where the furniture is going to stay. I don’t like moving furniture around. I just like everything to be where it’s supposed to be—forever. That allows me the ability to improvise around, because I know where everything is in my life.
I like my life to be very static; however, God likes my life to be very dynamic. He likes your life to be very dynamic. Life is always moving. It’s always changing. You are always changing. You may have looked at yourself in the mirror today and said, “I look exactly the same today as I did yesterday.” But, trust me. You look exactly one day older than you did yesterday. If you’re under 21, that might be encouraging to you. If you’re over 21, there starts to be some tension in that idea that we’re just one day older. But, it’s true. Life is always changing. You’re always changing, and serving changes over time.
When Glenda and I started coming around Hope Church, we didn’t have any kids, and we had a lot of available time. You could call us up if you wanted to go see a movie. We were probably available. If you wanted us to just hang out somewhere, we were probably available. You heard from Jon Holiday, and he talked about when he was working on staff that there would be opportunities on a Saturday night that he would call people up and say, “Hey! Can you serve?” I was one of those people. My wife was one of those people. As it turns out, now that I am in the position that I am in, Jon Holiday has been one of those people that I have called, as well. We were just available.
Then, we had our first kid. Life changed, not a lot but a little bit. Now, we have four kids. Four kids—they are ages 11 through 3, and we are just not as available as we used to be. My wife is homeschooling with all of the other house maintenance stuff. She’s got more than a full-time job. I’ve got a full-time job. We like to spend time with our kids, with each other, with our friends. We also want to serve at church and do other things. There’s just all kinds of things we’d like to do. What that has meant for us in this season of raising our kids is that we have to be super intentional about how we use our time. And, we have to be super intentional about what opportunities we say “yes” to when it comes to serving in church.
There have been those who I have led over time who were in the crunch years of raising their kids, and they’ve said “no” a lot when I asked them, “Are you available to serve on something?” They’d say, “No.” They said, “No,” a lot, and it gets depressing. But then, the kids graduate from high school, and they are empty nesters. They say, “Yes,” all the time, and that’s great. It changes over time. So, parents, it is easy in these crunch years to feel like, “I feel bad that I can’t serve at the level that I used to. It’s stressing me out.” Or, you might feel like your kids are sidelining you from the real, significant work in the ministry, and they’re a drag. Or maybe, you just feel like dead weight because you can’t serve at the level that you used to, and the church is just dragging you through life right now.
Again, let’s all take a deep breath in, and breathe it out. You are okay. You’re in the life stage that God wants you to be in. Pastor Harold has said this before. I know that our kids’ ministry will reinforce this. It’s a very, non-American thought, but it’s this: “What if the raising of your kids to be bold and confident as they walk as adults in relationship with Jesus...what if that was the greatest contribution you made in your whole lifetime to humanity and the church?” The Bible says that children are a reward from God. They are a heritage to Him, and of all the people in all of history that God wanted to raise those kids, He picked you. So, raise those kids well. Just don’t use them as an excuse not to serve. Your kids need to see you serving. That’s how you start them on the road toward this being a value. Even though I was a reluctant kid that my parents took serving in different ways, it was still a part of what I knew I needed to do as an adult. I just didn’t want to. Then, God changed my heart over time. Your kids need to see you serving.
The spirit of this Heart Attitude is that you are doing your part. You may not be able to do everything that you used to be able to do. You might not be able right now to do all the things that you will be able to do, but you, right now where you are, can still do your part, even as it looks different over time. 1 John chapter three, verses 16 through 18, says, “By this we know love, that he (Christ) laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.” In other words, we need to make our lives available for the benefit of others. “... But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need yet closes his heart against him…” If we can serve but don’t… “...how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”
If you’re serving right now, way to go! Great job! Keep at it. That’s awesome. You’re going to learn so much about who God is and how God made you as you team with other people to serve the church. If you are burned out like I was, that’s also fine. We want to give you the space that you need to decompress and heal, but at the same time, I would encourage you to still pitch in where you can. Whatever the equivalent of stacking chairs is for you, still pitch in. I can testify that by doing something small, God can start to heal you. Because of Covid, serving at Hope has changed just a little bit. You may not be as available because of health concerns or job availability. You may not be able to serve where you used to. Maybe because of Covid, the team that you used to serve on doesn’t exist anymore. It’s just changed a lot of how we do church as a church.
But, don’t let Covid take you out or give you permission to not follow this Heart Attitude to do your part in the ministry. You can get creative. You can call or email into the office with, “Hey, I’ve got this idea. Would that work?” Or, maybe, “I don’t have an idea. Do you have any way that I can serve, even if I’m not able to come into the building on a Sunday morning?” There’s still plenty of opportunities for you to serve, even if you’re not at 1750 Beach Street on a Sunday morning. If you are not serving right now, then you are missing out on a cornucopia of blessing that God has for you that as you work with other people, you get to see other’s lives and how they’re growing in the Lord. That’s an encouragement to you. It’s how we get traction in walking with the Lord.
You’re going to need to decide whether you’re going to take seriously this Heart Attitude of participating in the ministry or not. Are you going to say no to serving your interests only and shifting that over to where you are serving other people that are investing in you. Take it from someone who got involved in serving very reluctantly. It is much more fun, much more engaging, much more exciting to be on the field playing than sitting in the stands. Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, thank You that You give us a way to have an investment in Your work in the world. You provide the ability, gifting, and opportunity to be a conduit of Your love, mercy, and encouragement to fellow Christians and to the larger community. We admit that we’re a squirrelly bunch, and our flesh desires to hang back and sometimes only serve ourselves. But in the power of Your grace, please help us to cling to Your holy ways. With You, God, we’re never going to lose. Father, help us to be content in You and to serve You through the serving of Your church. It is in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior, that we pray. Amen.
