Serving: Each One’s Gift
Written by Alan Berthiaume | Pastor of Adult & Family Ministries
Topic Summary:
The Lord has gifted every Christian to serve the local church by uniquely forming them and equipping them with gifts only they can employ. Therefore, serving in the local church is a biblical and enriching expression of engagement towards the church family the Lord has given you.
Article:
God is sovereignly at work in the life of every individual. From the moment they are created in His image to the day they stand before Him in glory, God is intimately involved (Psalm 139). When we apply this theological reality to the area of how and why we serve in the local church, our beliefs are put to the test and revealed in our actions. God’s word is abundantly clear that we are to serve one another in the church “as each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace” (1 Peter 4:10). The God who made you knows what is best for you. He has sovereignly determined that your greatest position in the church is that of a servant. So why don’t most Christians serve in the local church?
Para-church organizations like Ministry Architects research volunteer trends within Christian churches and have found that most congregations have less than 50% of their members and regular attenders serving in the church. That means, statistically, more than half of those attending church today are not using their unique gifts and talents to serve one another. One line of reasoning as to why is that people feel like they do not have anything unique to offer the church or that the roles they would fill are already filled by others. However, the Bible tells a better story.
The command given in 1 Peter 4 is repeated throughout Scripture as even the Apostle Paul says in Ephesians 4:7 that God has given each one of us gifts, and he clarifies in verse 12 that these gifts are for the building up of the body of Christ. He then goes to great lengths in 1 Corinthians 12 to explain how unique each one of us is, and he uses the example of a human body to show how eyes, ears, nose, and feet are all uniquely different yet work together for the betterment of one body. So too, each Christian in the local church is unique and necessary.
“The reality is that God has fashioned each and every one of us uniquely to bring something to the local church that does not exist in the same way in anyone else.”
You have a distinct mixture, a collage of giftings and talent, mixed with your unique personality, that has been hand-designed by God. The gifts and talents you have are meant to benefit those around you. In fact, the command is that we would “strive to excel in building up the church” with our gifts of service (1 Corinthians 14:12).
Therefore, the first step to flipping the statistics on those who serve in the local church is to realize that the church needs you and your unique gifts and talents. It does not need someone similar to you. It needs you because there is no other you in the church.
The second step is where we move from theory to practice. Once you accept that God has uniquely made for the betterment of the church, you then need to find somewhere and start serving. Do not make the pivotal mistake of hesitating or waiting on the sidelines, hoping for the perfect area of need to open that matches your gifts and talents. There is only one you. So, wherever you serve, you bring something to the local church body that no one else can.
“When you see a need in the local church, fill the need. Thankfully, there are several opportunities at Grace Baptist in which to serve, and all of them are open to those seeking to utilize their gifts and talents.”
Our Welcome Team consists of friendly and sociable individuals who greet our church family on Sunday mornings and serve as a first point of contact for those visiting for the first time. At Grace Coffee, our helpful volunteers prepare hundreds of drinks each weekend and, during the week, serve to interact with those from the community looking for a good cup of coffee. The Grace Music department is made up of numerous volunteers who share their musical talents to guide congregational singing each weekend in worship. Our Grace Theatre team prepares various performances throughout the year to develop their God-given creative abilities for the purpose of magnifying God’s glory and engaging our community. At Grace Counseling, we train volunteer biblical counselors to walk alongside individuals from the Grace Baptist Church family who are facing difficult circumstances in order to offer guidance as they grow in their relationship with Christ. Our Grace Prayer teams meet in various capacities weekly, in person, and virtually. Volunteers pray together over specific requests, seeking the Lord in all areas of life and ministry. Our Grace Students Ministry volunteers partner with parents to cultivate a community of belonging for each student and seek ways to help develop students to be faithful followers of Jesus Christ.
And, when it comes to serving, there is one area that boasts our largest pool of volunteers and our most regular area of need for new faithful servants: Grace Kids! Each week, hundreds of children, many of whom do not have a personal relationship with the Savior, attend Grace Baptist and interact with our Grace Kids volunteers to learn more about the Bible and the good news of the gospel. Godly men and women are encouraged to consider Grace Kids as a place to live out their faith, exemplifying the light and love of the Lord before a watching generation.
If you would like more information on serving at Grace Baptist, visit our “Volunteer” page on our website.