Membership via Fantasy Draft?

Back in the day, I used to be a big baseball fan.  The kind who knew about who was batting in the eight hole for the 4th place team, could quote the stats, kept score when listening on the radio, etc.  Although I am no longer a passionate fan (baseball died in August 1994, as far as I am concerned), I still like to watch it live (high school, college, minor league, major league - doesn't matter)  And I still like to catch some of the World Series.  Maybe it's still the little kid in me, or maybe the fact that I attended the 1994 All-Star Game, but there's something that catches my attention every year at All-Star time. 

Thinking about the All-Star game played last night, I couldn't help but think about the church.  Often, it can be tempting to play with the idea that if we just had certain people in our church, everything would be perfect.  Especially as the new preacher, I hear a lot about, "Man, I wish we had so-and-so, they are GOOD church members."

What if we were able to hand-pick exactly who we wanted to be in our church?  What if we were able to put exactly who we wanted into certain roles and positions, like an all-star team? 

All-Star teams are not reality.  They are chosen by non-experts (the fans) who go off their personal tastes, irrespective of what a player's role may be within a specific organization.  Watching these supposed best-of-the-best gather for one night may be entertaining, but great teams are made up of everyone, even the most unlikely, fulfilling a specific role.  History is filled with teams trying to grab the absolute best at every position, and while they may have the most individual talent, these teams rarely accomplish what they were set up to do.

The church universal, and the individual congregations like North Cross that make up the church universal, is made up of many different people doing many different things to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

As you go through this week, take a moment to reflect on the fact that you have a unique role to play in the kingdom of God, a role that no one else can do quite like you.  Reflect on the fact that North Cross UMC has a unique role that only we can play, and let us focus on who we are and who God wants us to become, celebrating that God has brought us together to be us, and no one else.

See you Soon!

Lamar