Tuesday, March 06, 2007

Finding time or making time?



Have you ever found yourself in the same position as the man with the cap on? Excited about a great program your church is kicking off, but when you find yourself being questioned on how you're going to “plug” yourself into the program, you begin to make all kinds of excuses on why you can’t get “plugged in?” Lack of time, family commitments, work, etc...

Well, our church is just kicking of a building fund campaign called “Discovering Tomorrow” with a stewardship series. We started off by introducing a month-long time of prayer and fasting accompanied by a daily prayer guide. We’re also having “Personal Communication Meetings” where we invite small groups of families from the church to have a time of Q&A, as well as sharing important information about the campaign.

This past Sunday, we started advertising the campaign with the video below. Yes, I know it’s amateur stuff … a far cry from what some of the large mega churches can produce. The quality’s not A-plus, and the actors are not professional (YET!), but I’m so proud of the great job my little church was able to do with this video. It’s full of comic relief, and while it's specific to our particular campaign, it really gets to the heart of the matter, causing you to think through your own motives for your own church … Are you, in fact, “finding time” to be involved in a program at your church, or are you really making a point of “making time” to become involved in a program that can expand the Kingdom of God? And, when I say "program," I mean anything from setting up on Sunday mornings, to greeting new people, to helping direct in the parking lot, to singing in the choir, to passing out bulletins, to teaching a Sunday school class, to counting money, to ushering ... oh, the list could go on, and on, and on. I guess my point is ... are you plugged into your church, helping out where the ministry NEEDS you ... or are you expecting your church to plug into you and give you what YOU need?

Take a peek at the video and let me know what your thoughts are!

"I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service." 1 Timothy 1:12

7 comments:

Beth/Mom2TwoVikings said...

God must be working on and moving among all of us. I just wrote something similar about this yesterday...http://twolittlevikings.blogspot.com/2007/03/hope-spring-eternal.html

And, congrats, on your new campaign! God's blessings!

nicole said...

Okay, a confession. I didn't watch the video. I get irritated watching videos online for some reason.

Anyway, I just wanted to say that being involved in various things at my church has been the greatest choice I and my husband have ever made. There is no question that God has shown himself to us through the people in our community. When people ask me for advice when getting married or expecting their first child I always stress the need to be a part of a faith community.
I hope your church's efforts are blessed.

redmaryjanes said...

This is a great post. It seems like the same people carry the load at our church and the vast majority of the congregation want very little involvement.

Shalee said...

Personally, that video hit home for me. I can find time to do the things I want to do, but when it comes to things that God is nudging me towards, I find plenty of excuses to say no.

That being said, I have started giving to God my schedule. We're involved in a couple of life groups, church on Sunday and a signing class on Wednesday nights. I figure that if God made the days of the week, he can make my life into something planned, purposeful and good.

May your church discover God's presence in each member's life and be examples of faith with actions in the days to come.

Stacey said...

That's funny, your church sounds a lot like our church right now. We're in the middle of our "Seize the Moment" campaign for our building. It's so exciting to see God working through our church in the community! I'm so glad I'm involved because I get to see the cool behind the scene action that other don't!

Sandy said...

Great post! For the first time in years we are finally getting involved in our church. Thanks for the encouragement. Just found your site :)Come visit me if you have time.

Lovely Rita said...

Thanks for posting this. I know the guys worked a long time on this video. It's funny, though, we watched it so many times at our house that although I'd never talked to Mike we all felt we knew him. Even Matt came to him and said somewhat sadly, "I miss you" and gave him a hug... Cute.