More on serving people
As I’ve said before, one of my favorite bloggers (and storytellers) is “Strider” from “Tales from Middle Earth.” His latest post, “On Finding Water,” goes along well with my previous post “They don’t want cake.” In fact, I was excited to read Strider’s post while I was working on my post a few days ago.
Here’s an excerpt from Strider’s post:
Of course, we love doing humanitarian work. Jesus has called us to love people and in loving them we find that they need two things: a relationship with Him and a standard of living that will enable them to survive. We live in a very poor Country that needs multitudes of things. I hope we choose the things we do by listening to and obeying the Holy Spirit.
In order to hear His voice we pay attention to several things. One, we help people with some of their deepest felt needs. People may need sanitation but if they don’t know this then there is no sense in providing it. We go to a community and asked them what they need rather than provide for them what is convenient for us to do. In following this line we have been asked repeatedly for fresh drinking water. Many people- possibly several hundred villages- need clean drinking water and are suffering greatly with water borne illnesses as a result of not having access to any. Two, we need a project that gives us sustained access. Many teams have come in and dropped off a load of much needed aid, prayed a quick prayer, and then moved on. This is somewhat helpful… sometimes, but a viable church is not likely to result from this. Too often people do aid work which makes them feel better and successful and humanitarian and even spiritual but if we measure success by lives impacted then these kinds of fly by night projects don’t add up to much. We need relationship. So, digging multiple wells in villages has been very good for us. We have spent all summer in a remote village in the south, going down, spending the night, serving and being served. It has provided good ground for great conversation and the opportunity to share much love.
I’ve learned that people know whether or not you truly love them and want to serve them, or if you are just doing something to make yourself feel better.
They don’t want cake
For the last few years, we’ve been attempting to serve some of the residents of a government assisted housing development that we affectionately call “the Neighborhood.” We first started spending time with the residents because we were invited by our friend Cathy.
After speaking with Cathy briefly, it became obvious that there were several great needs in this neighborhood: spiritual (certainly), physical, emotional, nutritional, financial, etc. Our family could not meet all of those needs, so we didn’t even try. Instead, we simply served in way that we could.
But, we also attempted to serve in ways that the people in the neighborhood wanted. For example, because of the nutritional need (this is a HUGE need among people who live below the poverty line), we began to take small bags of fruits and vegetables to the people that we met. We didn’t spend alot of money on each bag… probably only about $10 or so.
Eventually, we found out that some people like watermelon while others like cantaloupe. Some liked potatoes while others preferred squash. Some like beans and some liked corn. Some were happy with anything that we brought them. They were all very grateful.
But, it wasn’t that they were necessarily grateful for the produce. Instead, much more, they were appreciative that we spent time with them, got to know them, and brought them things that they wanted and needed.
We were not the only people who would bring food to the residents of the Neighborhood. But, it seems that we were the only ones who spent the time necessary to build a relationship with them. This meant we had to spend enough time with them that they began to trust us (which wasn’t always easy).
One morning while we were visiting with one of the elderly ladies, another group was going door to door giving the residents food. They gave this lady some bread, doughnuts, and cakes. She thanked them and put them on her table, while the group left and made their way to the next house.
Our friend started laughing. I asked her why she was laughing. She said, “They bring me cakes and pies and doughnuts occasionally. Never ask my name or anything. So, they don’t know that I’m diabetic and can’t eat any of it.” She offered the sweets to us, but ended up throwing most of it away.
Now, the group that brought the cakes and doughnuts and bread meant well. They wanted to serve this lady, but they didn’t know how to serve her. One size does not fit all when it comes to serving people.
Instead, we must spend time with people so that we can know what they want and what they need. Guess what? We made some mistakes early one. We brought some people food that they did not eat. But, we learned, because we kept coming back.
And, most importantly, we always saw the people as more important than our acts of service. We would gladly and quickly change how we were serving someone as we got to know them.
All of our service was for an ultimate purpose, of course. Bringing fruits and vegetables might help them a little. Giving them a ride to the doctor’s office or picking them up at the emergency room may be beneficial.
But, our ultimate goal was to demonstrate and proclaim the love of God and the good news of Jesus Christ. He love is personal, so our service should be personal as well.
A servant is a leader is a servant
Jesus defined leadership like this:
But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. (Mark 10:43-44 ESV)
So, a leader is one who serves. And, Jesus defined service like this:
For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. (Mark 10:45 ESV)
If someone is not giving up something costly (i.e., even his/her life) for other people, then that person is not serving. If that person is not serving, then he/she is not a leader and should not be followed.
It’s really rather simple. We should not measure our leaders by their education, speaking abilities, or giftedness. Leaders are those who serve.
If we are not following servants, then we are not following the leaders that God has placed in our lives. (By the way, if we are not imitating the servants, then we are not following them.)
(Can you find the leader in the picture?)
Talking with Muslims
Once again, Dave Black has spelled out what should be common sense (or at least spiritual sense) for any Christian. He lists some thoughts about talking with Muslims from his experience (Friday, September 10, 2010 at 7:41 a.m.):
protect their dignity
affirm their value as persons
let your actions speak as loud as your words
become a friend
recognize that some will reject you
look for opportunities to serve them
allow them to serve you
ask questions
be slow to speak
become aware of religious barriers
introduce them to your family
refuse to argue
be sensitive to signs of receptivity
plead with God for their salvation
love, love, love
This seems to be a good way of speaking with and treating anyone… even Muslims.
God Gave Me This Ministry
I’ve said this before, but in Scripture, “ministry” means “service.” It’s not an organization or employment or education or position or anything like that. It is the simple act of serving other people.
Scripture tells us that God will give us the strength and ability to serve other people, and that he will be glorified when we serve other people.
God never asks us to start a Ministry; he asks us to start ministering to (serving) others.
(By the way, I’m not in the picture attached to this post. This is a picture of some of my friends following God’s call to serve other by helping put siding on someone’s house. They did not start a construction ministry. They served a family by doing what was needed.)
The Church and Shepherding in the NT
I’ve been invited to speak to a group of pastors (actually a local Baptist association’s pastors breakfast). My topic will be “The Church and Shepherding in the NT.”
The topic was suggested to my by the person who invited me to speak. He had read a few things that I had written about leaders and service in the NT. He said he thought it would be good to discuss the relationships between elders/pastors/leader and others in the church according to the NT. As he said, this would then lead to a discussion of the nature of the church.
So, thinking through these issues (leadership, service to others, nature of the church), what passages of Scripture do you think would be important to this type of discussion?
Internet Ministry: What is it?
A couple of months ago, I was asked to write a post about internet ministry. Since I was preparing to leave for Ethiopia, I said that I would write the post after I returned. As I was studying and thinking about the topic, my post turned into a series of posts.
In this first post, I want to define what I mean by the term “internet ministry.” Now, to be completely honest, this is my definition. While my definition may be similar to others, I wanted to define the phrase in a way that express what I think about ministry itself. So, I’ll begin my definition with the term “ministry.”
As many, many scholars have pointed out, the English term “ministry” comes from the same Greek term as the English term “service.” “Ministry” is “service” and “service” is “ministry.” In the New Testament, there is not difference. So, in my definition there is no difference either. “Internet ministry” is “internet service.”
But, serving whom? In Scripture, service is also directed toward other people.While it may be beneficial to do something that benefits only yourself, this is not service. For example, if I write a book, but do not show it to anyone, it is not an act of service. It only because a possible act of service when I then share that book with others. So, “ministry” or “service” is directed toward others and interact with others in some way.
Thus, “internet ministry” is “internet service directed toward and interacting with other people.”
Now, what about the “internet” part of the phrase “internet ministry?” For this series, I will include any technology, app, or function that uses the internet as “internet.” That may seem obvious, but this means that both email and cell phone apps could be included in the phrase “internet ministry.”
On the other hand, simply having a computer program does not mean that I would include that program in the phrase “internet.” For example, I often use BibleWorks, but I would not include that software package in the term “internet.”
There is at least one more statement that needs to be made about “internet ministry.” I’m writing this from the perspective of a child of God – from someone who desires to live as a disciple of Jesus Christ. As such, my intentions in serving others is so that those other people will be drawn to the love of God and begin following him as well. In other words, I want to see people grow in maturity toward Jesus Christ as the ultimate goal.
So, I could give a hungry person food as an act of service. But, as a child of God, I also give them that food to demonstrate the love of God and to attract them to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. This idea is not found in the terms “ministry” or “service” but should always be found in the life and actions of a disciple of Jesus Christ.
Thus, as a Christian, my idea of “internet ministry” must include the idea of helping someone grow in their understanding of God and in maturity in Christ.
So, “internet ministry” is the use of online services, apps, functions, and technologies in order to serve people with the intention of helping those people grow in maturity towards Christ.
The Sheep or Shepherding?
Rod left a comment on my post “Rejected” that I want to give more visibility.
His comment was an excerpt from a Christianity Today article called “To Serve Is to Suffer.” Here is part of the article:
The biblical model of community life is Jesus’ command to love one another as he loved us—that is, for members to die for other members (John 15:12-13). The model of Christian leadership is that of the Good Shepherd dying for his sheep, not abandoning them when the situation gets dangerous (John 10:11-15). When God calls us to serve him, he calls us to come and die for the people we serve. We don’t discard people when they have problems and cannot do their job properly. We serve them and help them come out of their problems. We don’t tell people to find another place of service when they rebel against us. We labor with them until we either come to agreement or agree to disagree.
When people leave a church because they do not fit the program, it communicates a deadly message: that our commitment is to the work and not to the person, that our unity is primarily in the work and not in Christ and the gospel. The sad result is that Christians do not have the security of a community that will stay by them no matter what happens. They become shallow individuals, never having true fellowship and moving from group to group. Churches committed to programs can grow numerically, but they don’t nurture biblical Christians who understand the implications of belonging to the body of Christ.
The way we treat people who disagree with us demonstrates whether we love the people or the work… (By the way, I think this is true for all believers, not just elders/pastors/leaders.)
Stump Chopping Church
Some friends of ours are beginning to meet together with the specific intention of serving their neighbors, co-workers, and friends. He recently sent me a description of their meeting. It may not sound like a typical church meeting… but, that’s a good thing, I think. This is what he said:
Sunday we met with the S.’s and one other family in their home and studied scripture, sang with a guitar, and prayed together. It was good to sit around and talk about all the people we know who we can serve and then move forward right then to contact some of them. This is something we are going to try to do a few times a month as we look to see what the future has for us, while hopefully bringing in a few other families as well.
I ask my friend to explain what he meant by “talk about all the people we know who we can serve and then move forward right then to contact some of them.” This is what he described:
We talked about who we know that needs help and we came up with a person J. works with that is going through some financial hardships (her husband is a Muslim who is opposed to the gospel but she is a professing believer). We called her and she had received help that same day already from her mom with groceries. We found out her windshield has a huge crack that needs to be fixed so we are going to see how to get funds together for that. J. also knows a 97 year old lady in town who she has taken food to and who doesn’t have family around. We tried to call her but wasn’t able to get a hold of her at the time. (This lady is amazing, even though she is old she lives alone and does yard work for her house and a few rental houses she owns). I called a lady from Africa that works in the cleaning department (she lives alone and doesn’t have a car or family close by). We have had her up to our house before, so I called her and setup a time to have her up to our house and to take her grocery shopping (she loves to fix food from Africa). Lastly, a friend of ours who A. and I meet with weekly for breakfast and encouragement has some stumps in his back yard that he wanted to grind but he lost his job recently and is starting nursing school in September so his funds are limited. Instead of renting a stump grinder, A. and I are going to attempt to go over there while they are out of town and chop up some stumps with a couple of axes (they aren’t huge trees and we figure it may be good exercise). As you can see, J. is our person of peace, which makes it easy to come up with people with needs because she naturally meets them or people gravitate towards her.
I love the way they met together! What? Do I love the Scripture they studied or the songs that they sung? Well, probably, but I don’t know what that was.
What I like is that when they gathered together, they thought about and discussed how they can serve others. And, instead of just talking about it, they started doing it right then! Yes!
Sounds to me like considering one another to stir up love and good works… (Hebrews 10:24-25)
They felt we had nothing to give them
A friend of mine sent me the following quote from an article called “Anachronism and Adventurism: Recent Mission Trends“:
Most of the volunteers I have observed in the Dominican Republic and elsewhere have arrived on the field with the desire to work with, not for, the nationals. However, many volunteers lack even minimal cross- cultural sensitivity or knowledge of their own denomination’s understanding of mission. Such people are apt to repeat the mistakes of the past. On one occasion a group of American evangelical volunteers traveled to Barahona to spend two weeks “working with the youth.” After they returned to the U.S. I asked the president of our youth group what he thought of the volunteers’ work. He replied: “They said that they had come to us with a mission, but they took no time to understand our mission. They should have come to share with us. It’s as though they felt we had nothing to give them. They spent a lot of time on the beach handing out tracts and lying in the sun. Evidently this made them feel good.”
This is a good admonishment and warning to anyone attempting to work with people from other cultures. However, I think this warning also applies to those who are seeking to minister to people within their own cultural context.
Do you think it applies? How?