We are servants in an upside-down kingdom, which means leaders serve first. Photo by Aj Collins Artistry at Pexels.com
25 But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, 28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Matthew 20:25-28, ESV
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My fellow church tech: are you finding yourself frustrated and bored with the production at your church? Have you said something to your leadership about it, but nothing has changed? Or perhaps they explained to you that those changes just aren’t feasible right now? Do you find yourself wishing you could do more?
I have good news for you. It’s time for you to lead (probably), or maybe for an attitude adjustment, but it’s probably time to lead.
Actually, it’s probably time for both things.
What do I mean? I mean that if you’re unsatisfied with the status quo, it means you have one of the most important traits of a leader: vision. It means you can see something that others can’t, and you’re willing to do something about it. And if you’re stuck in a situation where leading isn’t an opportunity for you right now, it means that the Lord is preparing you to lead by teaching you how to humbly follow, which is the exact attitude adjustment you need.
We are servants in an upside-down kingdom, which means leaders serve first. Sure, they have authority, but that authority merely means they’ve been entrusted with the great responsibility of caring for people and resources, and the best way to do that is by serving, and you don’t learn how to serve well except by serving well.
So that means that even though you might be frustrated right now with the production value of your church, you need to serve. As much as you need vision, vision without a servant's heart will throw people under the bus. Vision without a servant’s heart doesn’t value people over product, and there is no production that’s more important than people. People are who matter most to the Lord.
Now, what if you’re actually the one in charge of production—you’re the one leading—and you’re finding yourself frustrated with the status quo?
Guess what? It (most likely) means the same thing. You can have all the vision in the world, but chances are the Lord is calling you to take on the role of a humble servant and take care of the church you’re at right now, serving the leadership where you’re at right now. It can be tempting to hop on LinkedIn and find a flashy new church with a bigger production budget. It’s even more tempting when those churches find you, but you have to pause and pray, “Lord, where do you want me right now?”
You have to serve before you can lead. Lord, make us good servants.
