Serving in church

Things only happen at Christ Church because there are so many people involved in serving in many different ways. And there's always more to do than is being done!

People sometimes ask 'how can I serve at Christ Church?' We don't need a specific job to be serving Jesus in the the church, we just need to get on doing it! Here are some pointers to begin with:

Be there!

Simply being in church or at a meeting is a great encouragement to others. It's a real help too if people see familar faces week by week.

Sometimes we live such busy lives outside our working week that church attendance can become erratic. It's something we fit in, rather than fit other things around. But for the sake of ourselves, our family, and the wider church family, it's good to be there.

Be all there!

Our heads can be so full of everything else that even if we are physically present in church we're not spiritually engaging. It's good to pray for ourselves and others before coming: for those teaching and leading, for ourselves and others to be listening and growing in Christ, and that we would be protected from the evil one in our gathering together. Perhaps read the passge before hand. It's good to pray with our children too on a Saturday for the Sunday gathering with God's people.

How can we encourage one another on a Sunday?

• Looking out for one another, and greeting people we don't know. It can be easy to stick with the people we meet with in Growth group or another friendship group.
• Singing up! We don't have to make a show but it's good if our singing is with both head and heart as well as voice.
• Praying up! 'Amen' said with conviction shows we really do agree with the prayer prayed.
• Opening up! Opening the Bible when it is read and explained shows that we're engaging with God's word not listening to human insights from the preacher. And it shows the newcomer or the enquirer that we hope they will listen to Him too and not us.

Let's be all there for one another when we gather together.

Be all there to serve!

Sometimes people ask, 'what's my gift?' It's puts the focus on me. A better and more Biblical question to ask is 'how can I serve?' That looks outwards to how I can encourage and build others up in some way. We may find some gifts we didn't know we had too!

There are lots of ways to serve at Christ Church. Not all have a title or are given much public recognition but are enormously valuable. Are you serving others at Christ Church. Don't wait to be asked! You can start right now - pray!

Do it for Jesus!

We serve to honour Christ not ourselves. Colossians 3:17 says: "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

Serving God's people is a privilege not a prize. We should serve thankfully not grudgingly if we serve in Jesus name. And we serve to bring honour Him not ourselves.

A friend of mine used to ask me 'Iain, would you do anything for Jesus?' and then ask me to do some small thing. It's a good question.

Do it well!

Jeremiah 48:10 says, "Cursed is he who does the work of the LORD with slackness". It's a challenging verse isn't it? If we're doing something for Jesus we need to do it as well as we possibly can. Not turning up, regularly turning up late or leaving early, and not finishing something are all signs of slackness and not really being bothered about serving Jesus and our brothers and sisters. Whatever we do we need to do it as well as we possibly can.