Ordinary Service
[The following article was originally published in the Summer 2012 issue of Maidens of the Master, a topical e-magazine edited by a young friend from our church. Email me to subscribe.]
What can a daughter do to help her family minister in such a way as to be a shining light? It’s a big question, and I felt paralyzed as I sat down with paper and pen to sketch out ideas for this magazine article. Where could I start? Family, ministry, shining lights… It’s all very lovely, but what am I supposed to do?!
I suspect many of us are paralyzed by the question of how to be a witness to the world. We want to serve God as a family, but the concept is nebulous and massive. Too many of us founder on an idea that Ministry is some huge and faraway labor (above all, a Spiritual labor); but what ministry actually requires—even if and when you get to that faraway place—is simply the ability to recognize and seize the present opportunities to serve. What is your work then?—that work which is under your hand.
We often use the phrase “to the world” when we describe “witness” and “ministry,” and I suspect it’s that word world that causes many of us to envision the other side of it—because the world is “out there” and we are just “here.” For those of us not called to share the gospel in Africa or India, it is easy to feel out of it, stuck, or maybe even spiritually inadequate. We are not in a place to do the really important work of the Kingdom.
But rest assured that you are not located at some remote outpost; you are, in fact, somewhere in the world; you are in the thick of it; and your neighbor is the embodiment of humanity which it is your privilege to be able to reach. Ministry is right next door.
Okay, that’s a little too close and scary. While the world was far away, it was easy to love it—to enclose it in that vague, universal embrace which we are too ready to congratulate as Christian charity. But the teenager who plays loud music into the wee hours of the morning, the woman with the yappy Maltese, the man whose weeds keep crawling through the fence—these are the ones given us to love. (I know. They have faces. And personalities. Real, particular people are difficult because they are real and particular. That’s why we have First Corinthians 13—in case anyone thought love was comfortable. It isn’t a pretty thing in a border of roses and hearts. “Charity suffereth long.”)
Love isn’t a passive state of feeling; it is a virtue, an “acting power” literally. So I take you back to the arena of love which is—wherever you are. Who else is there? What are their names? Do you know them?
There’s a widow down the street who needs help moving from her apartment. There’s a lonely stay-at-home mother who needs encouraging fellowship. There’s a grumpy librarian who needs a friendly greeting. There is a shut-in on the church list who would love visits, letters, and phone calls. Do you know these people?—and do you know their needs?—and what can you do about them?
So, what does ministry look like for a family? I have no glossy, prepackaged notion for you. Family ministry is often unglamorous and untidy.
Last year, I answered God’s prompting to pray for a friend who attends the church we attended previously. We hadn’t seen her for months, but I suddenly felt I should write her a note.
Through the correspondence of the next weeks I became aware of her need for encouragement; she was caring for a husband in the last stages of Alzheimer’s. I would send her chatty news, copy uplifting words from the Bible, and share the specific prayers I had made for her and her husband.
When she needed to change apartments, we knew about it and made ourselves available to her. For weeks, Mama would drive my sister and I to help pack boxes, do laundry, run errands, and keep her company.
When heavy lifting or carpentry work was needed, one of our brothers came to help. When I was sick during a time she needed help, another sister took my place. The little boys sent her Easter cards. We brought one of her lamps home for Papa to repair.
Everyone was involved somehow in this “family ministry.” Although we weren’t working on the same things or at the same time, together we were exercising by God’s grace his love for this woman.
And although we experienced great joy and fulfillment in this, it was not always fun. It was difficult and even discouraging, and we were often doing things we didn’t like. That shining light? It’s not a spotlight on us. Ministry is never for showcasing our talents or making us feel good about ourselves; it is for the glory of God, and knowing this we also recognize the power and beauty of the work he has given us.
I still sing Matthew 5:16 to the tune from the Donut Man cassette: “Let your light shine before men that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
No one is asking you to generate light; allow the light of Christ’s indwelling to shine freely through the works which he has ordained for you. Pray, be receptive to the Spirit’s promptings, involve yourself in the lives of others, recognize their needs, serve them, and find opportunities for others in your family to give blessing (and to be blessed) through their own service.
It is a great privilege and encouragement when you can minister to others with the support and involvement of your parents and siblings!
COMMENT ON THIS POST BY SENDING AN EMAIL TO THE HANDMAIDEN.
HEIDI said...
I loved the spotlight image, how we ourselves are not the focus of service. Thank you for the well-crafted article and the reminder that service is right next door.
Tuesday, September 24, 2012 12:41 PM
HANDMAIDEN said...
I’m glad this article was a blessing to you, Heidi! I too was reminded and encouraged by God’s Word as I prepared this article.
Thank you for your comment!
Tuesday, September 24, 2012 05:32 PM
Friday, August 10, 2012