Monday, August 17, 2020

What We Miss About Church: Congregant Reflections

For our devotionals this month, we asked various congregants what they miss the most about being together. Join us for this series of reflections that remind us of what we miss and who we are called to be.

Scripture for the Day
Luke 9:49-50

John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him; for whoever is not against you is for you.”

COVID-19 took away my normal routine of interacting with volunteers and providing direct services to individuals experiencing homelessness in Community Ministries. I miss that. But it opened up a whole new world of opportunity for virtual volunteers on a scale unsurpassed in Community Ministries.

It reminded me of every springtime. Our garden has plants that come up, that were not planted. We opt to call them volunteers. They come up alongside the cabbage, kale, and tomatoes we planted. I have found mint and bitter leaf. I was tempted to weed out the volunteers and make the garden neat and tidy, but resisted and reasoned that the volunteers will make for a larger harvest.

In the scripture, Jesus’ mostly clueless and competing disciples reported seeing a volunteer driving out demons in His name. Impulsively, they tried to remove the volunteer, but Jesus responded with a much larger perspective, telling His faltering followers to let the volunteer keep working.

Perhaps such is your dilemma when observing Christ followers who look, think, talk, or act a lot differently from the way you do. Maybe they protest or speak up against systemic and systematic social injustice. Their style of service may be different from yours. But if they bear fruit in Jesus’ name, you need to heed His words of correction: “Whoever is not against you is for you”.

To all our virtual volunteers, you make for a larger harvest and your work is visible.