This weekend Stephanie Bernotas, one of our staff writers and World Race alumna, served at Passion 2014 here in Atlanta, Georgia. As someone familiar with ministry, she thought she was ready. But this is her story of how God rocked her with truth she had forgotten.
Missions. Ministry. Calling.
Those three words evoke images of Mother Theresa feeding starving children, world-renown musicians on stage in front of thousands, and maybe a book deal or two. They sound just glamorous enough to make you well-known, just difficult enough to prove your love for Jesus is well-founded, and just dignified enough to make you well-respected.
But what if God called you to sharpen pencils?
What if he called you to weed a garden?
What if you never got the respect, the proof, or the stage?
Would you be okay with that?
If we’re all honest, sometimes we feel like we get stuck with ministries that aren’t cool enough.
Everyone loves months on the World Race where you get to save women from trafficking or feed starving babies, but what about the months that you’re digging ditches for no apparent reason or worse, cleaning out a chicken coop?
They’re not fun, they’re not picture-worthy, and they’re not exactly changing the world. Or are they?
I have the privilege of attending Passion City Church on a regular basis. Each Sunday, our house is led further towards Jesus by Louie and Shelley Giglio, Chris Tomlin, Kristian Stanfill, Christy Nockels, Bretty Younker, David Crowder, and occasionally Matt Redman and Rend Collective. Quite a power-packed bunch, right? It’s a blessing to say the least. These men and women are absolutely changing the world, and God has given them the opportunity and stage to impact millions.
This weekend our church hosted 20,000 college students in Atlanta for Passion 2014. Added to the roster of world changers were people like Francis Chan, John Piper, Kari Jobe, and Christine Caine.
These people aren’t stuck with chicken coops and ditches. They have light shows, book deals, and quite honestly, the most humble hearts I’ve ever experienced in my life.
But I have no doubt that if God told them to quit and clean chicken coops forever, they would do it immediately and with full hearts.
But this weekend I had nothing even close to a chicken coop task, and yet my heart did not resound with “immediately” and “a full heart” at first. I was tasked to sell Resources (books, DVD’s, t-shirts, etc.) in the nearby food court. Y’all, the food court.
That meant long hours on our feet, big crowds, and like other volunteers, no access into the arena where Jesus was changing the hearts of 20,000 college students.
Even the live stream video to our volunteer area wasn’t working at first. And I was a little grumpy. I wanted to be in there. I wanted to be a part of it. But as the video turned on, and the volume turned up, God smacked me in the face.
It was in the middle of Louie’s talk, and he was encouraging the masses to take attention off themselves and onto God.
“To the degree that self reigns, that’s the degree that God isn’t preeminent in our lives.”
Ouch.
I felt my eyes moisten and kind of bit my lip. What had I been thinking? These men and women lead us in such humility, and get I was throwing a silent hissy fit that I wasn’t in the room I wanted to be in.
That’s not the heartbeat of our church.
And it shouldn’t be the heartbeat of the church.
Passion calls their volunteers “doorholders.” While some of us do indeed hold doors open, it’s about a lot more than that. A door is a barrier to a house, and we want to welcome people into our house. We want them to come into our house and be fed, full, refreshed, and full of Jesus. We want to do any menial task necessary to make their entrance into the house of God as easy as possible so that they can receive all that God has for them.
“Better is one day in your courts than a thousand days elsewhere… I would rather be a doorholder in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.” Psalm 84
We’ve already been inside the house of God. We’ve been adopted and invited into his family. Now it’s time to open the door and invite people in. In the words of Louie, “We want to open the door and drop you off at the feet of Jesus.” It makes it not about us, and all about him.
And when we serve with relentless joy and a commitment to Jesus, the attention comes off ourselves and we’re okay digging ditches, cleaning out chicken coops, selling t-shirts, and not being where the stage is.
Our mission, ministry, and calling has less to do with what we’re doing and more about who we’re doing it for.
So instead of being a missionary, consider being a doorholder. Leave behind desire for recognition, honor, or brownie points with God. Consider serving, with joy, any task that will open doors into the kingdom of God. Serve as if you were serving God and not men. Sharpen pencils, weed gardens, dig ditches, clean out chicken coops, and sell t-shirts.
Do it because it’s not about us.
It’s about one name, and his name and renown are the desire of our souls.
Wherever you’re serving the Lord today, whether it’s from a stage, with an orphan on your lap, writing a check to support a ministry, changing trash bags after everyone else goes home, or cleaning a chicken coop, know that you matter. You’re part of this thing. So do it with your whole heart. Because it’s about Jesus.
Photos via @stephaniebernotas, @passion268, and Stephanie May
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