Understanding that the Church is a Body.

Romans 12:3-8
3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. 4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5 so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.

6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

Many Christians believe that they can survive on their own without the aid of others. That is not true. In fact, it's not really possible. Maybe if you do nothing but go to church it is. However, we are called to be committed to our church in whatever way possible and even so one cannot have all the authority to themselves. Everyone has to come together...partnering up with others to work around the church. Much like you can't completely function on your own without vital body parts like an arm and a leg, neither can the church function without a unified body of Christ.

In a previous post (September 18) I talked about spiritual gifts. There are many evaluation tools out there to help determine your strengths and weaknesses from different categories (like leadership, hospitality, and evangelism). This narrows your search as you look for opportunities in your church. I remind you that if you e-mail me at heytbone92@gmail.com, I can let you utilize those tools. This will keep the process from becoming too overwhelming. God grants everyone with special gifts and no one has a talent they can't use for the church.

My Sunday School teacher, Mr. S, who taught me when I was in middle school always said..."The church is not the BUILDING, it's the PEOPLE. The people within the church make all the difference."

“Church isn’t where you meet. Church isn’t a building. Church is what you do. Church is who you are. Church is the human outworking of the person of Jesus Christ. Let’s not go to Church, let’s be the Church.” ~Bridget Willard