More Bottom Up and Less Top Down

This week was Mission Awareness Sunday, and much of the worship was led by ladies from the Women’s Missionary Society of our congregation. The message, prepared by a minister for use across the country, focused on mission efforts of primarily laypeople in bringing about positive change. John 6:1-14, the only feeding of the 5,000 account specifying that it was a boy who shared his loaves and fish, was the basis for reflection on how we respond to being overwhelmed. Certainly many of us and our churches can feel overwhelmed. Do we more often give up and assume there is no solution? Or, by partnering with others and offering in faith what little we have to Jesus, do we allow our gifts to multiply beyond what we could have imagined?

I love my home denomination, but I have to admit that a pet peeve of mine is the focus on hierarchy and control from the top down. If I had a dollar for every time I’ve been asked if I am going to go into ministry (I’ve been in ministry for over two decades, just not Word and Sacrament), or told that something I was trained to do or wanted to buy was just for clergy, or been directly impacted by decisions from a committee or court of the church without opportunity to speak or vote, I would be a rich woman. It strikes me in the story of the loaves and fish that not only did Jesus rely on the non-credentialed disciples and challenge them to fill a need, but He also used the gifts of a child - a nobody at that time. He didn’t go to church officials or rabbis to meet and make a decision. He used the seemingly woefully unqualified to make the miraculous happen through Him.

This got me to thinking about how we reflect this story in our congregations. Too often, those who are in the trenches seeing the real needs week to week in their programs and classes are not valued for their knowledge, gifts and calling. They may be commissioned in the fall and thanked in June, but they can be taken for granted. Too often, those charged with program design are committees of adults, often those who don’t want to be on the front lines of the programs anymore and may have lost touch, while those who participate in the programs are not included, particularly children and youth. Too often we don’t discern and seek out the callings of all people in our midst, rather than raising up ordained professionals onto pedestals. Those pedestals can be quite a burden and have potential to negatively impact clergy and congregations.

It would be a mistake to give veto power to kids, many of whom have been conditioned to always want something new and different day to day and even hour to hour. But it would also be a mistake to think that our younger generations have nothing to contribute in terms of ideas to revitalize and grow congregations, to multiply the gifts available and to counteract the sometimes overwhelming anxiety many in older generations feel about the future of the church. Consider the following to respect the calling of the whole congregation:

a) Include children old enough to sit and take in what is going on in your congregational meetings. You may choose to have leaders talk beforehand with them to explain what is happening. Obviously, appropriate particular issues and the children’s abilities need to be carefully considered. Any of their ideas and insights should be shared with the congregation. Be sure to value the input of leaders affected by any changes. Encourage careful listening.

b) Talk with children and youth about the work of the church. Challenge them to think about what interests them and where their gifts are. Have them identify each other’s skills and talents. This could range from offering prayers or leading kids’ time in worship to greeting new families, serving on a committee to operating the sound system or designing the powerpoint, assisting younger learners to being on the catering or visiting team. Setting up safe and solid mentors will help everyone develop their gifts.

c) Share scriptures like the feeding of the 5,000 from John's gospel that emphasize the importance Jesus placed on children in a time where they were not valued. Remind your children and youth of their worth right now. Create safe space and ask them whether or not they feel an important part of what happens at the church, and whether they feel welcome and able to be themselves. Brainstorm as a congregation ways to live out welcome and inclusion.

d) Where appropriate, share congregational needs with children and youth and pray for those concerns in your program groups. With permission, bring needs of your programs and participants to the wider congregation for prayer. Share good news from adult, all ages and younger ages ministries in worship and print for everyone to celebrate.

Everyone, regardless of their age, ability or length of time in the faith community, is chosen, called and precious in God’s eyes. When our church life becomes about power and control, then our focus has shifted from Jesus’ ministry to ourselves and our human structures. Guard against this. Instead, celebrate the vast variety of gifts you have within your church to share with those inside and outside its walls.