Teamwork

You have probably heard the old saying, “Teamwork makes the dream work.” I believe that is true. You see this in athletic competitions. Often times the better team out performs the team with superior talent. You see this in business when a group of workers buy into the company vision and overcome obstacles to succeed.

Sadly one place at times you can miss seeing true teamwork is the local church. All it takes is one or two power hungry pastors, deacons, elders, or committee members and teamwork can be thrown out the window. In the place of teamwork you can find fussing, fighting, power moves, manipulation, and selfish ambition.

That is not the topic of this blog. I would rather spend a little time bragging on the people of Faith Community Church. They are working together as a team. Yesterday we entered a float in our homecoming parade. Our plans included making people aware of our new congregation while seeking to bless the children in the community. We used the theme, “Bubbling over with spirit.” We built a three dimensional version on our church logo, threw out eighteen buckets of bubble gum, passed out three hundred bottles of bubbles to the children along with several t-shirts. We blew bubbles all along the parade route. People worked diligently to pull it all off. It blessed my heart to see the workers and to see the finished product. A job well done troops.

Watching our team come together to dream, brainstorm, and eventually put the float together blessed my heart. God is literally uniting our hearts around His vision of reaching people in Paradise and Wise County. When Sunday morning services are over it is like watching busy bees putting lunch tables and chairs back in place while also packing up the sound equipment. Men, women, students, and children all pitch in to clean up on Sunday mornings. If people are not working to put everything back in place we have others who are working diligently to make our guests feel welcome by engaging them in conversation.

We have people who work on creating advertising, work with our children, provide refreshments for our students and children on Sunday nights all without fan fare and desire for attention. People are finding their place of service and giving of their time and talent to build the kingdom and grow this church.

At times I feel like a coach directing people to different positions and celebrating when they perform at a high level in their given areas. Our music has been astounding. Our children’s ministry is organized, fun for the kids, and most of all scripturally saturated. Events are planned together as a team and pulled off together as a team.

Our people love being together. Several of us went out to eat last night after the parade and laughed enjoying great Mexican food and one another. People linger long after the Sunday morning service is over talking. We often sit together at ball games. This seems to me to be what church was always meant to be. Simple. People loving one another and serving together to accomplish a common goal. I am proud of our flock. We have a long ways to go but I love watching the team labor together shoulder to shoulder.

Faith Community Church, thanks for letting me serve as your pastor and for taking the dream of this new church to heart. We are in this together. Thanks for the ways you give, pray, serve, and love the Paradise community. Though we are many members we are one body and Jesus is the head. We all have a role to play. [I Cor 12:14-27]