Invested

Several weeks ago, we looked at the greetings in Romans 16. Here is a sampling of the text:

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae. (v. 1) 

Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus. (v. 3) 

Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. (v. 6) 

Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. (v. 12) 

Servant. Fellow workers. Worked hard. Those are just some of the words that spring to Paul’s mind when he runs through this list of partners in the gospel. It’s easy to imagine Paul as a lone ranger for Jesus, but clearly that wasn’t the case. Paul’s life was woven together with brothers and sisters who were committed to the same gospel and following the same Lord. He worked. They worked. All for Jesus.

What does that have to do with our transition to Green Springs? Well, I do want to remind us all that this is not the work of the staff or the elders only. Of course, our staff has more time and opportunity to do certain things, and we’re happy to do it! No, the point I want to make is that ministry happens best when ministry happens together. I want you (and me) to take ownership of whatever God entrusts to us. 

How might that happen? Well, I’d encourage all of us along a couple of lines. If you can come to either of the Open House events (Sunday, December 9th from 2:00-4:00 pm, and Saturday, December 15th, from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm), keep your eyes open for ways to “improve” the space—what do we lack, what do we truly need, what is unclear or less than ideal (keeping in mind that ideal is rarely possible and extravagance is not our goal). Maybe you see something that can make for a more hospitable environment or something that can help us in CFC Kids. Maybe you see that we need a trash can over there or a table over here. Let us know. We may not be able to do it now (or ever), or there may be a good reason we haven’t done it, but it’s good to know. We want lots of eyes. Better, we want invested eyes. This is the space that God has entrusted to us, not just the leadership. 

Another way to take ownership is by serving. In many ways, our current service teams can just function at Green Springs instead of Rosewood. The team that counts the offering probably won’t forget how to count when we move a couple of miles to the west. But there will likely be other areas of service that are needed. Perhaps you could lend a hand by serving in some fashion—parking team (okay, so we don’t actually have a parking team, but we probably will!), greeting, running lyrics, benevolence, etc. In fact, maybe you’ll see a need for an entirely different group of volunteers. Whatever the need, let’s ask God to give us attentive eyes and willing hearts.

I’m grateful for you, church. I’m grateful that this is not my move or Nick’s move or Ryan’s move. This is our church’s move. And I’m thankful just to be a part of the community that God has created called Christ Fellowship. To God be the glory.

Blessings,

Bart