For many women, service is a part of their character. Many of us learn as little girls to serve others as part of a daily routine. Even some of us have been taught to perform various types of service in the church from a young age -- e.g., altar guild ministry, acolyting, hospitality initiatives, and others (we all have our own lists). Because of the ingrained programming of service, some of us then may miss, may not be aware, of God's call to service. It is a huge difference that too many churchgoers fail to recognize, and thus, there are those instances in some churches where 20% of the people do 80% of the work of ministries. Consider the following message I gave to members a while back on knowing who you are in the Lord:
We are many of us involved in various ministries at church. Many of us have come to know what God has called us to do in the building up of the church. 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, and Ephesians 4:11-13 share the types of ministry gifts that God has bestowed on individuals and on the local church. The ministry gifts on and in individuals do not happen when you sign up for church membership. They do not happen when a priest or clergy task you with an assignment. You don't get them as a result of going to meetings or classes. THE ONLY WAY WE RECEIVE INDIVIDUALLY THE MINISTRY GIFTS SPOKEN OF IN THE ABOVE SCRIPTURES IS THROUGH THE INDWELLING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT WHEN WE ARE BORN AGAIN AND ADOPTED AS SONS OF GOD. I can't say it any more plainly. The 'deposit' of the Holy Spirit in us - our guarantee from God of salvation - is the first gift of rebirth. From that point, the Holy Spirit operates within a believer and follower of Christ in a unique way that was preordained for Him to work, part of which is the bestowing of your personal ministry gift. Because many churches do not talk about the Holy Spirit, who He is and what He does in the lives of Christ's followers, so many churchgoers are ignorant of this part of their life in Christ if they have been saved. It is that call by the power of the Gospel and Holy Spirit working in us that God initiates our new life in Him - we have no power to do it ourselves.
The blessing of that calling is that God will enable us to do what He has called us to do. What He has called us to do has spiritual implications, and is outside of the natural -- therefore we cannot successfully respond to God's calling in our own strength. That is, we must do all things in Christ who strengthens us for the work we have been called to do.
How do you accomplish God's will in Christ? As believers, we have Christ living inside us in the form of the Holy Spirit. (please read 1 Peter 4:11; 2 Corinthians 12:9; Philippians 4:13,19; Romans 8:9; Ephesians 3:16-18) How do you know how to respond to the indwelling of God? Well, how does He speak to us? Through study and meditation of his Word, the Bible - the believers' handbook and authority, through prayer, and through circumstance. If you leave out the first two, it will be hard to discern the third one. When you leave out the first two, you will find your calling may begin to feel like a burden, or that it has become a routine duty - something on your checklist, something to satisfy your church membership or sense of doing good. When you don't do the first two regularly, the intimacy to which God is calling you to be in with him may escape you. When you don't do the first two consistently, it will be challenging to do God's will with joy. The sad truth is that there are those throughout Christendom who have been going to church for years and giving to the church in time and money and, yet, they have never known God because they will not do the first two things. (2 Peter 1:3-11, 20-21; Isaiah 5:13; Hosea 4:6; Ezra 8:22-23; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 4:1-4; Hebrews 5:11-14; 6:1;Psalm 119:114; 1 Timothy 4:10; Hebrews 10:23;1 Peter 3:15; Romans 15:4,13; Nehemiah 1:3-6; Matthew 26:41; Luke 6:46)
Ladies, I pray that the only true burden we have in our work for the Lord within the Body of Christ is the burden of desperately wanting to please God in fulling His purpose for us. He will help you do whatever He has called you to do, sometimes using your God-given natural talents to accomplish the work. Do not forget though: do your utmost to continue first to seek relationship with Him who has called us, rely on His strength, and allow God's Word to dwell in us richly as we do his will.
Blessings.
On Easter weekends, the youth at my church participate in a project called "30-Hour Famine," where the opportunity for raising funds for food insecurities, crises and disasters leads them to go without solid food for 30 hours. They have raised thousands of dollars for WorldVision, which has been able to often be doubled or tripled by other donors. On Holy Saturday, the 'famining' youth engage in a service project; a couple of years ago, they fashioned blocks to express something they are grateful for about Resurrection Sunday. I took them home and assembled into a cross for a hanging (I won't say how long I stayed up piecing and completing the hanging), and it now adorns the sanctuary during Easter season. On another occasion they made decorated t-shirts for a charity our church supports (it was so cool to have teen guys sewing and designing!)
I was asked to do an Advent stole vestment, and made this (still needed final ironing in this pic).
Another large banner for the church sanctuary for Pentecost (ignore my basement floor 'storage system' - it was about 2 in the morning when I took this pic). Using my phone camera doesn't do the piece justice. It is about 5.5 by 4 feet. The flames and Spirit depiction of a flying dove are in the background. I want to make another companion banner that has the I AM tetragram letters and the name of the Holy Spirit in Hebrew.