An all-volunteer army

 These thoughts are not what you might expect given the above title.  I am not talking about the military.  I am speaking of the church.  We are a massive organization comprised of mostly volunteers.  Even at the local congregational level, churches have a massive volunteer-to-employee ratio.  A church may have a pastor or pastors on staff.  There is frequently a number of musicians (both instrumental and vocal).  There is usually a custodian or two (or more).  Larger churches may have individuals with dedicated ministries of administration, education, outreach, evangelism, or other forms of service.  But for every compensated worker there are scores, even hundreds of volunteers.

 Some of our offices are high-profile.  We can usually identify the Trustee Chair, the Church Council Chair, or the Lay Leader.  But, do you know who waters the flower beds?  Can you name the person who picks up the stray bulletins after worship?  Are you able to identify who prepares the elements for Holy Communion?  These people don’t do their tasks for the recognition.  They undertake their work in order to make the machine that is the church go.  There are scores of people who do all kinds of labor in service of the church, or in performing outreach in the name of our congregation.  I can’t put a price tag on all the tireless effort expended by our church members.  Their help is a gift.

 We have talked in worship the last several weeks about those vows we all made when we became official members of the church.  These include “upholding the church with our prayers, our presence, our gifts, and our service.”  Let’s not think that because ‘service” is last on the list that it is an inferior endeavor.  Without the faithful service of our congregational members, we fall flat on our collective face in a single week.

 So, consider this a word of appreciation to everyone who gives volunteer effort to our church.  But also consider this as an affirmation of faithfulness to a set of commitments that we make when we join a church.  We are saying, “This is what it means to belong.”  We are also saying, “This thing is important.  It is vital.  It is not to be taken lightly.”

Thank you for your service.