June 16, 2018

 “For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot should say,” Because I am not a hand, I am not part of the body”, it is not for this reason any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body”, it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as he desired.
1 Corinthians 12:14-18

     About a month ago I was outside working in the yard. I had just finished mowing and trimming the grass. Then it came time for my least favorite chore, hedge trimming.  We have about 20 shrubs in the front and side of our home.  I had gotten around to shrub 14 when my electric cord kept getting in the way of the clippers. I shook the hedge clippers several times to keep the cord from getting cut. Then I messed up. The cord fell across the hedge trimmer again and I reached to save the cord from getting cut. Then it happened, I cut the cord and my finger. Susan took me to the emergency room and ten stitches later I returned home with my finger in a splint.  I only had to wear the splint for a week, but I was amazed at the end of the seven days, my finger didn’t want to bend!  As I am typing this, it has been five weeks and the use of my finger has slowly gotten back to about normal. I was astonished at how quickly a body part can lose its usefulness when it isn’t exercised. God gave us our body parts were to be used.

     As I thought about my finger, I couldn’t help but to be reminded of what the Apostle Paul was saying about the church in these verses. Each Christian makes up the body of the church. He emphasizes that we are ALL a part. Everyone is important. My body could tell that my right index finger was no longer able to scratch, type, shave, and push down on a steak knife or text.  That caused my other fingers to have to do jobs that they weren’t used to doing. The body only works at peak efficiency when all of its parts are working together, each one doing its job.  Many churches today are struggling because too many Christians are doing nothing more than, “riding a pew”. If you look at a list of church officers or a nominating committee report, you will see the same names in several positions. Why, because some of the parts of the church body are not working. If you are a part of a church, then God has you there for a reason, to serve Him.  Use the gifts and abilities that God has given you to further His kingdom. Don’t just sit there, serve. Be a useful and functioning part of the body of Christ.