My son was sitting next to me in church when the nominating committee report was being distributed. As he looked at the report with the various ministries and names on it, he turned to me and asked, “So what’s my job?”
He had just been baptized a few weeks earlier. As a newly baptized member of the church, he wanted—expected—to be part of the workings of the church. Quickly, God impressed me, and I reminded him of a job that he has been doing for the past three to four years. This cannot be called a glamorous job, but it is an important one. He changes the sermon title on the sign in front of the church each week. If he did not do it, people would notice. He is involved, and our church is better for it.
Once a member becomes baptized, he or she should be affirmed as a participating member in the body of Christ and given a responsibility in the church. Every member, young or old, is a minister, and every member can do something to contribute to the mission of their church, whether the job includes changing lightbulbs, changing
the sheets in the mother’s room (my first job), or changing the church sign. Total Member Involvement is an initiative focused on empowering each church member to unite our gifts and ministries to share God’s last-day message of hope with the world. For more ways you and others can be involved, go to TMI.Adventist.org.
—Jackie Ordelheide Smith serves as an assistant director in the Sabbath School Personal Ministries Department, General Conference, Silver Spring, Maryland, United States.
