Give your best
For a good portion of my early Christian life I had the honor of working with Dr. Ralph Sexton, Jr. Brother Ralph is the Pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Asheville, NC and an Evangelist that has an amazing ability to reach through denominational lines to serve God across the globe. During my years of service through this ministry, I was given the opportunity to serve in many areas, including music and A/V. While I have to admit that Brother Ralph is not always the easiest person to work for, I wouldn't trade what I learned from him for anything in the world.
The reason that Brother Ralph sometimes seemed difficult to work for, is that he demands excellence in his service to our Lord. Some may say that he sounds like a harsh man, but that is far from the truth. He was (and is) one of the greatest Christian men that I know. His quest for perfection has nothing to do with uplifting himself, but to bring honor and glory to God. The phrase he often said that will stick with me forever is "You don't give God junk".
If you think about it, we really don't take God as serious as we should. His name is no longer revered as it should be and we treat Him more as a personal servant to do our bidding than as our Lord and Savior.
When we give money, time, or donations, we should give our best. So often I have seen people donate items to their church that they wouldn't even use themselves. I have seen too many Pastor's paid less than minimum wage (if you figure up the hours they work). Churches often cut corners on equipment purchases making God look cheap and our faith look small. Volunteers are hard to come by and many will not commit to ongoing service. We leave our cell phones on during church services, wear hats into the sanctuary (when lost men used to take them off even as they drove by out of respect), and even sleep during worship services. Something is wrong with the way we worship . . and the way we give.
I realize that much is asked of A/V staff, and I do believe that church staff should work hard to accomodate the needs of their volunteers, but I also believe that we should be willing to work for God as hard as we work for our employers. We serve not the church staff, but the King of Kings.
In all that you do, do your best.
Until next time,
~Shawn
The reason that Brother Ralph sometimes seemed difficult to work for, is that he demands excellence in his service to our Lord. Some may say that he sounds like a harsh man, but that is far from the truth. He was (and is) one of the greatest Christian men that I know. His quest for perfection has nothing to do with uplifting himself, but to bring honor and glory to God. The phrase he often said that will stick with me forever is "You don't give God junk".
If you think about it, we really don't take God as serious as we should. His name is no longer revered as it should be and we treat Him more as a personal servant to do our bidding than as our Lord and Savior.
When we give money, time, or donations, we should give our best. So often I have seen people donate items to their church that they wouldn't even use themselves. I have seen too many Pastor's paid less than minimum wage (if you figure up the hours they work). Churches often cut corners on equipment purchases making God look cheap and our faith look small. Volunteers are hard to come by and many will not commit to ongoing service. We leave our cell phones on during church services, wear hats into the sanctuary (when lost men used to take them off even as they drove by out of respect), and even sleep during worship services. Something is wrong with the way we worship . . and the way we give.
I realize that much is asked of A/V staff, and I do believe that church staff should work hard to accomodate the needs of their volunteers, but I also believe that we should be willing to work for God as hard as we work for our employers. We serve not the church staff, but the King of Kings.
In all that you do, do your best.
Until next time,
~Shawn
posted by onevoice at 5:04 AM
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