Sunday Morning Ministry

Karl and I are looking for a church here on our island.  We’ve gone to two churches in two weeks.  Both were nice, but we felt much more comfortable the second week. This is the non-tourist season here, and both churches were relatively small (under 100 people I’d guess).  This past week at the second church, the moderator stood up and welcomed everyone at the start of the service.  He invited anyone who was new to stand up and introduce themselves.  Now, in reality, this is the moment that makes Karl suggest that we just stay home.  He is much more shy than I and hates being in the limelight.  Irregardless, (that’s a word Karl uses, and I think he may have made it up!),  every eye in the sanctuary turned to us at that moment, because clearly we were the only unfamiliar faces there.  Let me rephrase that,  smiling faces turned toward us, and made us feel as if they’d been waiting for us to arrive.  That’s ministry.

That welcome has stayed with me this week.  It has prompted me to think about Sunday morning ministry and what it is and can be.  Sermons are ministry, but how important are they compared to other things?  Well, for me, I like a challenging sermon that makes me stop and think, but of all the sermons I’ve heard in my life, I probably can remember only a handful.  I take notes in my Bible sometimes if a sermon is significant for me (I usually put the date and place in the margin somewhere so I can remember), but on the whole, I’d put sermons at dead last in importance when I am thinking about ministry.

So, what is important? At a church service, I’ve always regarded two things as important, first – music.  I love that David praised God and “danced with all his might.”   (2 Samuel 6:14) and I love to stand and truly praise God with a group of singers who aren’t shy about singing and showing their love for the Lord. The right song can draw me to tears of confession and repentance or joy and thankfulness quicker than any sermon ever has.  That’s ministry.    The second most important part of Sunday morning for me is people.  Being part of a group.  Having people care for me and allow me to care for them – that’s ministry as well.  Last Sunday, the music was excellent.  It started with an a capella version of Lord I Lift your Name on High, and went straight up from there.  I loved the drummer, the tambourine and the mixture of voices.  I didn’t know every song we sang, but each one touched me and reminded me that God is big enough to be God in Wyoming and God of the Caribbean at the same time.  As far as the people, I think every single person there smiled, hugged or shook our hands or spoke to us and welcomed us without making us feel singled out or uncomfortable.  Even Karl felt good. 🙂  For the record, last Sunday’s sermon made me think about I Peter 3:1-7 in a new way.  (I did put a date in my Bible along with the note “Beauty on the inside speaks much louder than beauty on the outside.”

I’m not sure if we’ve found a church home on the island or not (we have a couple others we want to visit), but what I do know is that last week we were ministered to and welcomed as part of a congregation of believers.  That’s ministry!