Day 25 in the Wilderness- Team Work

Twenty-five was my favorite number when I played team sports- basketball and baseball. My biggest problem with team sports was that they never actually were about team but about individuals- what individual do we claim for the victory or blame for the defeat. Perhaps that's why I ended up concentrating on track as my main sport in college. Then you only had yourself to blame in victory or defeat.

Have you ever paused to consider how the Triune God is the perfect team. Consider the words of Jesus, "Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own ; but the Father who dwells in me does his works". (John 14:10) And later Jesus says, "I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate , the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will sned in my name, will teach you everything and bring all remind you of all that I have said to you." (John 14:25,26) There is no sense of ownership in these words of Jesus. Everything is shared between the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Such is a team in it's best sense. The team works together, builds each other up, and shares in the successes AND the failures. The team is not about blaming but about sharing the good news. E. Stanley Ott wrote a book, "Transform Your Church with Ministry Teams" and he reminded me of the ministry we share regularly at Covenant. "And when member of a staff team are enjoying friendship with other team members, being encouraged in their faith and faithfulness, and relishing the challenge of their ministries, their attitude will be infused throughout the entire congregation." (pg. 45) As we laughed and cried our way through our most recent staff meeting I was glad that we function as a ministry team and I am glad that ministry teams are thriving at Covenant. The Bulletin folders are a ministry team that gets together and does a task but in the process builds each other up. The Men's and Women's Bible Studies on Sunday morning and Tuesday afternoon and Thursday morning are groups that not only study a book or scripture but also attend to the emotional and spiritual needs of the members and the church. The choir not only sings together but prays together and supports each other. And the list goes on. I am profundly aware that as we go through the wilderness, we cannot do it alone and so I thank God for the ministry teams that we share in Christ.