Are You Getting Fat?

Spiritually fat that is. And maybe you aren't, but many of us are. I write this as much for myself as I do for anyone else.

In the last three days I've come across these three things that really bother me.

1. I invited a friend to Bible study, but due to the rapid growth in my church, there is a waiting list for child care. I hope she gets in.

2. For Wednesday nights, our small groups use the church as a resource for child care. Again, due to the rapid growth (which is a very exciting thing by the way!), they are having to start charging for child care Wednesday nights. It will be minimal, but I can't help but notice that there aren't enough workers for the amount of children who will be there.

3. The fabulous church I grew up in is asking for help in their Awana Cubbies program. They are at risk of having to cancel the Cubbies portion of the program or start turning people away. The Awana program had great impact on me as a child, the thought of it not being there for someone else makes me so sad.

There aren't enough workers.

That's pretty amazing considering the size of our churches these days. In the era of the mega church I think it is easier than ever to slide by unnoticed. To feel like you don't have to get involved because somebody else will do it. It's kind of like the emergency situation where everybody thinks someone else is calling 911, but nobody is. It's easy to show up and get fed, become spiritually fat, but do nothing with it.

Was it this way when we were kids I wonder? I really don't know. Either way, it makes me sad and leaves me pondering what I can do about it. It will take a sacrifice on my part. Someone sacrificed for me and for you. Many people did, so that I could hear about Jesus...

As a baby
As an infant
As a toddler
As an ugly 6th grader
As a junior higher
As a high schooler
As a college student
As a single
As a new married
As a pregnant mom
As a new mom
As a young adult
As a member of the church
As a visitor of the church.

The list goes on.

I am certain that hundreds of people have sacrificed so that I could know Christ as well as I do today. So that I could have His Word in my heart and on tap in a moment's notice. So that I could receive counseling and learn how to pray. It wasn't easy for them and it isn't easy for me to do for someone else. But it's so important and so much more useful than many of the other weekly commitments I have.

Something I have to remind myself of often in serving is this:

"It's not about me." 

I will miss socializing with my friends because I'm greeting at the door. I will miss easing into my chair next to my best friend because I'm trying to reach out to someone sitting alone. I will miss my sleep when I'm there early. But, what will be missed if I don't do those things? Someone else who doesn't know Christ needs to hear the message more desperately than I do.

What if every single member in our church just gave a little? There are many who give a lot, and many who give nothing. Couldn't we have so much more of an impact if we balanced the scale a little? Think about it. What can you do?