During my career in both business and ministry, my family and I have moved all over the country. In fact, in almost 19 years of marriage my wife and I have been a part of 10 moves. We have been blessed as a family by transitioning well and have never felt as if we were deprived of anything regardless of where we lived – be it on one side of the country in Florida or on the opposite side in Los Angeles, CA. I believe this was because we belonged to healthy churches in each of our transitions.
It is safe to say that we have attended virtually every kind of church available. We have attended churches in some of the largest cities in the world like Chicago, LA and Houston; while also having the honor to have been a part of the congregation in a small country church in a town of about 1,000. In each situation there were differences in the way the churches conducted service and worship. However, in each church, regardless of size or culture, two things remained constant. First was a love of the Gospel and a devotion to the saving grace of Jesus Christ. Second, was the role lay leadership played in keeping the church healthy and thriving.
I want to emphasize that second point, because I think many churches miss the importance of lay leadership. For those that do, I see that now or in the near future those churches will no longer exist or be relevant. Too many Christians are groomed to sit in the pews and hope to be fed with not only the word, but much of the basic frameworks and services that churches provide. Although many churches might retain some lay leadership, they generally suffer from the 80/20 rule with 20% of the goers doing 80% of the work. Don’t get me wrong; I do not desire to devalue the role of the pastor or any other key leadership roles within the church. However, if a church is going to be healthy, it can only do so with active lay leadership, regardless of size.
Our experience is that lay leadership provides opportunities for the individual Christian to utilize their spiritual gifts in a way that helps serve the greater community. God has provided everyone with certain skill sets that are valuable to help the church maintain vibrancy and relevancy. I have witnessed lay leaders in a home church that are responsible to organize fellowship meals or set up chairs for the five families who may attend. In other venues, I have been amazed that lay leadership has grabbed the reigns to lead church-led ministries like community construction teams and thrift store service.
Christ has called each and every follower to not only be in communion with Him, but to serve others in His name; regardless of their occupation. It does not matter the way in which church is accomplished. Size of congregation is but a number. Let each body worship the Lord in the way they see fit. However, if a church desires to thrive and engage their members, lay leadership needs to be at the forefront.
Whether you are in the city or in the country and whether your church’s numbers in the dozens or in the thousands, it is crucial to engage individuals in lay leadership. It will provide a more active following, build greater capacity, reflect the health of the church and build in sustainability.
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