The Pride of Church Ownership
the privilege of being coheirs
Nothing teaches responsibility like being put in charge of something. My parents, and in particular my dad, taught me and my siblings the pride of owning things. As we grew up, we were given charge of our room, toys, clothes, bikes, grades, and eventually our cars and finances. By doing this, he taught us to take pride in owning things. We kept our things clean and were proud of them—well, most of us did anyway.
As a kid, I was messy while sharing a room with my brother. Then one day, I became a neat-nick. My mom says it seemed to happen overnight, but I think it was because I finally got a room of my own.
When my brother got into computers, he filled his room with screens, speakers, gaming consoles, and an A/C window unit. At some point, my parents decided to put him in charge of paying part of the electric bill. After that, he began caring more about lights left on in the house.
Now, as a parent, whenever my thirteen-year-old starts acting like he doesn’t care, I know it’s time to give him more responsibility. It forces him to grow up.
Giving Up Control
Do you know what would happen if we never allowed our children to have adult responsibilities? Do you know what would happen if, when they were of age, we never let them have full-time jobs, participate in household duties, contribute to paying rent, or make their own decisions? Do you see what would happen if we always acted like an umbrella of protection, making their choices for them, and buffering them from the consequences of their decisions? They wouldn’t grow up.
This is probably the hardest thing a parent does. It means letting go of control, watching our children fail, and suffering with them as they experience the consequences of their decisions. But I think this is what God calls us to do. It’s doing what God himself does for us: gives us free will and suffers the consequences of our choices with us.
I think this happens in a church congregation as well.
Trustees and Committees
Shortly after my husband and I were married, we were nominated to be part of our church’s trustees, who are the people who take care of the church buildings. I chose paint colors, got quotes, and learned to evaluate the buildings. My husband and I helped install our church’s landscape and a playground. It was such fun!
Since then, I’ve never looked at the church buildings the same. When I see an issue, I can’t not do something about it. I fix the constantly running toilet in the women’s restroom. I cart away junk left in the halls or tell the facility guys about any issues I see. Caring for the church buildings is in my blood now, I guess.
The same is true for all the committees in a church. When we’re in charge of keeping up with our missionaries, we care more about our missionaries. When we’re put in charge of the finances, we suddenly care more about giving consistently. When we’re put in charge of the welcoming team, we care more about new people. And when we’re put on a church’s primary leadership team, we care more about overall goals and objectives.
Complainers
The other day, after church, my husband and I began discussing where to get lunch. The children interrupted loudly with their opinions on the subject.
“Let’s get Jersey Mikes! We haven’t gotten Jersey Mike’s in a long time.”
“No! I want El Pollo Loco!”
“We always get El Pollo Loco. I’m sick of it!”
The begging and whining persisted, especially after Phil and I decided to save a few bucks by making avocado tacos at home. The outcry was most unpleasant, but the children also weren’t offering to pay for our meal because, let’s face it, they’re just kids.
Being a grown-up means we consider what’s best for our family, pay for the meals or make them ourselves, and then deal with everyone’s complaints when the food isn’t to their liking. I’m so thankful I don’t have to do this alone. Phil and I can back each other up and say, while motioning to the backseat of our car, “Can you believe these complainers?!”
Growing Up Opportunities
Being in church leadership is something like this. Those who lead get an opportunity to think about what’s best for others, make the decision, and then handle the backlash of their decisions because, let’s face it, humans are very good complainers. Being in church leadership is a great way to practice “adulting,” as some call it, but it’s not the only place to learn these skills.
The Lord has made a world full of opportunities that help us grow: being a parent, manager, babysitter, teacher, landlord, trustee, caretaker, government official, zoo keeper, or farmer can do this as well.
Even in places where responsibilities are restricted or not given in their proper time, we don’t have to worry about stuntation. No, stuntation isn’t a word. I just made that up. Nanny governments, over-protective parents, micro-managing bosses, tyrants, elitists, and control-freaks may all do their darnest to work against God’s processes by controlling more than their fair share. Still, they can’t stop God’s work.
The Bible says that the kingdom of heaven is ours right now. This is not dependent upon how much responsibility we’re allowed or how much freedom our governments give us. It’s just a fact.
Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matt 5:3 NIV)Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matt 5:10 NIV)The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8:16-17 ESV)
but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt 19:14 ESV)
[The Kingdom of Heaven] will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. (Matt 25:14 ESV)
Conclusion
As members of the body of Christ, we are responsible for God’s Kingdom right now. We are responsible for one another’s growth right now. It doesn’t matter if we’re given an official church leadership job or not. God sees us as co-heirs and thus co-responsible for one another. It would be absurd if we believed that we had to have power over others and make their choices for them in order to impart the kingdom of heaven to others.
This is not unlike what the Israelites, and later the religious leaders, thought they had to do by conquering Canaan and enslaving other nations. They thought that by conquering and ruling, they would teach God’s word to the world. As Christ demonstrated, it’s not by being others’ judge and ruler that the gospel is planted in others’ lives, but by loving sacrificially as Christ did.
Will we contribute towards one another’s growth through sharing responsibilities, encouraging each other, and abiding together? Or will we shirk our responsibilities, grip power with clenched fists, “protect” others from responsibility, buffer them from consequences, and leave them to suffer on their own?
Thankfully, with the Lord, the choice is easy.
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I really like this post!Such practical ways of loving and serving one another. I love avacado tacos!