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“The true calling of a Christian is not to do extraordinary things, but to do ordinary things in an extraordinary way.”
Arthur Stanley
We will be reading through Nehemiah 1:1-4
If we look at the time of the Old Testament, a thousand years before Jesus’ birth, we see a kingdom from God that is reaping the consequences of their actions. They are a nation-state that was under the rule of God, sinning in nearly every task they were given, and ultimately punished through conquer and conquest. The power that was Israel and Judah before and during David’s reign is no more. Jerusalem lies in ruins after having been sacked. Many of God’s people have been captured and turned into servants under Nebuchadnezzar, a foreign king. This is the historical context for the book of Nehemiah.
Nehemiah, the man whom the book is named after, is a man who has lived in this age of defeat and grown up under a different ruler than God had appointed. It is during this time that Nehemiah finds himself as the cup-bearer for the king. Through his service to the king, Nehemiah earns great favor and is given the important task of protecting the king while he dines.
The book opens up with Nehemiah receiving his calling from God to restore the gates of Jerusalem.
They said to me, “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.” When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.
Nehemiah 1:3-4
These first four verses are as much about grief as they are about how one receives a calling from God and becomes impassioned with a mission that is bigger than could be imagined. Church technology is one area that God can call us to serve. Our job of serving the Church through technology begins with projectors, operating systems, and Yamaha soundboards, but this is not what drives us. We don’t give all that we have so we can craft the perfect tweet or edit video for the next church announcement. We do it because we believe in the Gospel and the calling God has put on our hearts.
My own personal calling started when I gave a voice to a youth pastor. I wanted to help him reach more people with the life-changing words of God and I did that with technology. What started out with my ability to build a youth group room with the best tech their budget has evolved into my calling to equip the whole Church, doing it with a heart of service and grace. What about you?
Use these reflection questions for the comments section.
- Have you felt a calling to serve on the church technology team? Recollect that moment when you first felt the calling and when you made the decision to serve.
- Where does that calling fit into your service now? Has it changed? If so, how? If not, where can you continue to grow your calling?
- How can your church tech team create a vision and purpose that unites the whole team to serve your staff, congregation, and community?
Speak your mind...