Next to the statement, “I love you,” I believe the most encouraging words to hear are, “I’d love to…”.

I was reminded of this a while back when a regular Bible class teacher had to drop out because of work commitments and I had to find a mid-quarter replacement for this class.

Finding Bible school teachers is always a daunting task for the Sunday morning program but a good teacher for a children’s class on a Wednesday night, with one week’s notice...next to impossible!

For this reason when the couple I called for help responded with the words, “We’d love to help,” I remembered how sweet sounding those words really were.

“I love you,” is full of emotion and speaks from the heart but “I’d love to…” is purely an act of the will. It speaks of purpose and the kind of attitude that epitomizes the Christian character that God wants so much to develop in all of us.

In the secular world we exchange our talents and services for money. Attitude is either a bonus or the grease that moves our careers along. In the church, however, most things depend on the good will of every member so attitude is everything.

For this reason the words, “I’d love to…” should be the goal we strive for in our attitude towards serving and helping each other as Christians.

As we enter the busy Thanksgiving/Christmas season there are many events and projects that fill the church's calendar-all needing volunteer help. When that phone rings, remember that the words, “I’d love to…” will signal not only your willingness to serve but also the beautiful spirit of Christ that you will bring to serving this congregation.