When we talk about serving in the church, we usually refer to Jesus telling His disciples that He came to be a servant, not to be served Himself. (Matthew 20:24-28) His life was all about serving others through His teachings and His healing ministry. He also led by example as He washed the disciples’ feet the night before His arrest. (John 13:12-17) If our goal is to become more like Jesus every day, then we are called to be servants in the church.
We should never have any difficulty finding volunteers then, right?? Why doesn’t everyone in the church jump in and help when there’s a need? Holy Spirit revealed a couple of things to me when I asked this question.
It really doesn’t come down to whether we should or shouldn’t be serving. The real question is this: Do you want to serve? Doing something you think you’re supposed to do is very different from doing something that you want to do. It becomes a matter of what’s in your heart. Real service is an act of love – love for God, love for people, love for your church family. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 tells us that love should be the foundation for everything we do. If we don’t include love in our actions, serving means nothing.
People can also see volunteering as “work” or just another thing that gets added to their To Do List. Webster’s 1828 definition of the word serve is “to act as a minister of.” We all become ministers of the Gospel when we choose to serve in love. If we learn to see volunteering as ministry and not just work, would we be able to say no if we’re being asked to serve?
None of us are called to do everything – we all need to ask Holy Spirit what our assignment is. But there is a place for everyone to be involved in ministry. Click HERE to see the opportunities available to you at EMIC!
