In High Demand

The other day, I had a thought about working with volunteer helpers and lay ministers....people who put in lots of work for not a lot of pay! How much can you demand from them? When have you asked for too much? When are you on safe ground? Have you strained your relationship? Are you still scraping the bottom of the bucket when the supply ran out a long time ago? These are all questions that run through the minds of leaders whose realms stretch beyond paid employees.

As I pondered this question it seemed as though Jesus spoke with clarity to my spirit and said, "You can go as far as your investment and chemistry will allow you." What a thought! Jesus invested everything into his followers while always attempting to make a valid connection with everyone He met. His time, His resources, His energy, His passion, His LIFE, everything He had...He invested. Investments insure that our stock is sufficient for the demand. In the leadership arena though, investment is not enough alone. The Scriptures are clear about the first century church, "they had everything in common." (Acts 2:44) Sounds like a pretty incredible chemistry to me! Surely they weren't all the same personalities with the same interests. So, why were they so connected? They had the same goal and the same purpose in view. They followed the same vision wholeheartedly....they all KNEW the vision! No matter how many different ministries we have, and how diverse the responsibilities, there must be one common thread, something strong enough to hold everyone together and push them towards the end result while allowing them to operate in their individual giftings. Their "common thread" was to love God and love people (as should ours be), and that very command kept them connected and energized to see the mission fulfilled. But, that would have never happened if Jesus didn't first invest, and He couldn't have invested without some type of chemistry or connection. That is why His teachings were always relative to the audiences personalities and experiences. It was probobly the reason Paul stated "I become all things to all men that I might win some."(1 Cor. 9:22) Investment and Chemistry absolutely go hand in hand. If I invest in you, but I have no chemistry with you, you might respect me for my investment while you will still be reluctant to fully commit to me or the mission because there is no real connection between us. If we have a great chemistry, but we never invest anything into the relationship, the chemistry that initially connected us will dissolve. Given, we will not always have a personal chemistry with everyone we meet, but there should be One Common Thread with the people we serve with.

I could talk about this for awhile, but that is it in a nutshell. If we want our volunteers and laity to respect us and stay on board we should invest in them and allow the chemistry provided to the body of Christ through the Cross to keep us connected. Just a thought!