Creating Committees

Flashback: There were 73 children at the youth group’s outreach program, under the leadership of Teacher Ana. The event, scheduled for 3 PM, included singing, story telling, a message about Jesus, and eating. 

All the children were on time. Ana, on the other hand, was still busy with the food and physical arrangements. Then the young people started to trickle in. But instead of helping Ana, they were on their phones. 

A church elder who dropped by observed what was happening and called Ana to a meeting with the other elders the next day.     

“Nobody volunteered to help!” complained Ana.   

“Did you form committees? asked one elder.  

Ana insisted, “It was they who prepared the program.”   

"Did they know who was to do what?”  

On a larger scale, this happened to Moses in the wilderness with the Jews whom God brought out of Egypt. (Numbers 11:14-17 ESV)   

Moses complained to God, "I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me.  If you will treat me like this, kill me at once, if I find favor in your sight, that I may not see my wretchedness.

"Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Gather for me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. And I will come down and talk with you there. And I will take some of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them, and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you may not bear it yourself alone.'" 

Art by Jacob de Wit 1739

In our modern language, this means, "Delegate; create committees. People should be assigned particular jobs to focus on so they can do them efficiently and properly."  

    

The Lord’s work has to be communal. We need to assign brethren to do specific responsibilities, so they, too, may find joy and fulfillment.  Had Ana done this, the work would have been carried out joyfully and successfully with the help of others.  

Today: I tear up every time I see faith brethren in our church—each working hard in his/her own way—using God-given gifts and resources to serve the Lord. At no time have I seen this kind of energetic volunteerism from all quarters in all our ministries. In these last days, thank you, Lord, for equipping your children for commual work. We cannot do it without your grace.