painted_colorful_hands.jpg
Of all the stories of the Lord’s calling in the Bible, the prophet Isaiah’s call intrigues me the most. What stands out to me is that unlike many of the others, Isaiah volunteered for his position. It seems like the majority of the stories involved God essentially assigning someone to a task. There was often reluctance or even push back, but eventually they obey. Isaiah’s story is different.

Isaiah 6 tells us that Isaiah had a vision of the Lord on His throne. The images try to capture the Lord’s glory, which is too much for Isaiah to process. Isaiah fears that his brokenness before a Holy God will lead to his demise. He is not only spared, but his sins were atoned for. It is at this point that Isaiah hears the Lord calling, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” Isaiah immediately responds, “Here I am. Send me!” 

What a response. It isn’t clear that Isaiah even knew what the Lord was asking him to do. He just volunteered for the job. I wonder how you and I would respond to the same experience. Regardless of what you think you might or might not do, it is evident that Isaiah’s desire for obedience blessed the Lord. 

This is a fitting story to consider when we think of the various opportunities to serve within the church. The church is the extension of Jesus’ presence in the world today. We are to continue doing Jesus’ work of making disciples and inviting people into a deeper life with God. This is the charge to the entire church with every one of us doing our part. 

While we have many opportunities available for people to serve, one that I want to hold in front of you to consider is serving with our children. The need is for Sunday mornings for either Sunday school or Children’s Church at 8:30 AM or 11:00 AM. Many of our servants have been out this summer, which has left some gaps. You may question if you have the gifts, but the main thing is that we want our children to interact with people who love the Lord. That is the most important gift with which can bless our children. You don’t have to commit to every week. We can work with your schedule, but at the same time, I don’t feel like Jesus wants us to beg for scraps either. I’m not trying to be pushy with that statement. There is always a cost to serving, and it is the cost that honors the Lord. 

One thing I love about our church is that many of us continue to heed the Lord’s call. Like any church, we have room to grow in that area too. My prayer is that the Lord would continue to work on us so that we are a church who is always ready to answer, “Here I am. Send me!”  

Blessings.
Pastor Brady