Pastor’s Manna

T-E-A-M

When I sit at my desk and look across my office, my eyes glance across a number of adornments that decorate my office: a quote from St. Francis of Assisi, family pictures, a football, some St. Patrick’s Day teddy bears, a needlepoint my sister made for my ordination, photos of churches I have served, a clock from a grandparents house, some photos I took, a quilt made of t-shirts from various youth-trips that I led, a framed map of the national parks, and the letters T-E-A-M from our churchwide retreat a two years ago.

I keep glancing at that final decoration, the word TEAM. Actually, it is in my office because people kept rearranging the letters…EAT, MEAT, TEA…, so I hijacked the letters and they never quite made it back out of my office! Now, as I sit at my desk, and they are one of the things I see every time I look up.

I really appreciate this word being so visible in my office, because it reminds me of the importance of working together…as a staff, as a family, as a church…regardless of WHO it is with, we are far better when we work as a team.

Jesus worked with teams. He called the 12 disciples, and He guided, taught and coached them to be a team to prepare them to go out and share the good news after His ascension to heaven. He even told them about not trying to go out alone, rather to go in teams of two. In this we learn that we are far stronger together than when we are apart. We were made to be in partnerships with others in faith.

Paul wrote about this in his letters. In 1st Corinthians 12: Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. He wrote to the Ephesians as well: From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

We are to be a T-E-A-M, and we all work with the same coach, our Father above. Do you know your role? Do you know your purpose? Have you determined what you can do, that no one else can do quite as well?

If you are unsure of any of these, please come and talk to a pastor here at the church. We can help you to identify who God is calling you to be and how you can become a more integral part of the TEAM!

In Him,

Pastor Jon