One of the things I keep thinking and praying about during our associate minister search is whether or not the person we pick will be self-starting & devoted to service in stirring & strengthening the Body. I believe it is important to have a good preacher, but I also believe it is equally important for this next hire to be a man invested in the people at Choctaw. Meaning, we need a man who notices & ministers to the troubled, who sees the fire in a believer and helps create leaders, who cultivates the spiritual seeds being planted, and who has a love for the building up of others. I believe as a minister it is imperative that we preach the Word effectively, but it is also imperative to act out the Word that we preach in an equally effective manner.

We get this idea of the importance of service to one another from Jesus Himself. Matthew 5:16, Jesus speaks of our light shining because of the good works being done. These works glorify God. Mark 10:43-45, Jesus says the one who serves will be first and that even He came to serve, not be served. John 13:14-15, Jesus states that if He as Lord and Savior washed the feet of His disciples, should we not wash each other’s feet? John 15:12, Jesus says to love one another as He has loved us. Over and over we read of the service to fellow Christ followers being done through deeds, not just words. When the Body is serving one another in love, we are strengthened and stirred onto good works (Hebrews 10), the community notices and God blesses by adding to our number day by day (Acts 2:43-47).

May we remember that it is not the preachers that make churches grow. Our job is to teach the truth, live the truth and nurture/serve others in their growing faith and then let God provide numerical growth, if that is His will (1 Corinthians 3:7). As we move forward, may we focus not only on how great of a speaker our candidates are, but assess whether or not they will also be ‘doers’ (James 1:22). I do not find it a coincidence that Jesus and the disciples were constantly among the people serving both spiritual and physical needs. If we want to effectively minister as He did, we should do it how Jesus did it, by teaching the truth and serving in it.

I believe the Lord loves us and knows what is best for us. May we continue to pray for our leadership that they will be guided into the Lord’s will and in the mean-time, serve one another in love.