Serving Together
Hello and welcome to Van Life Devotions.
Leisl’s great grandfather, Thomas Bagley was a pastor. On Saturday 25 March 1911 he coordinated building a church in just one day – the Preston Church of Christ in Melbourne.
That day, 150 people helped with the building including over 60 carpenters, 22 plumbers and 30 painters from other churches. From all over Melbourne the tradesman arrived early and by 7am were hard at work.
Every person had a job to do – boards were painted laid out on the grass while another group crafted the walls and gables flat on the ground. A group of around 30 men would then hoist the wall upright as it was hammered into place by others. The women collected wood shavings to light the fires for cooking meals.
By 4pm some reports say there were around 4000 sightseers.
When the scaffolding had been taken down, the plumbing work commenced. The local Fire Brigade provided light from their torches for the job to be completed.
By 10pm, gas and water had been connected, 300 seats installed, and the vestry and platform carpeted.
By midnight the church was fully completed.
The next day, Sunday, the people crowded at each of the three services to give thanks to God for what He had done.
Nehemiah chapter 3 is a similar story of people from Judah that came together, using their skills and abilities to rebuild the walls surrounding Jerusalem. It is largely a list of names and the sections of the wall that people repaired.
What is striking is that the chapter repeatedly says that people worked “next to him” or “next to them.” The work was done together. No one person rebuilt the wall, but when everyone faithfully completed their part, progress was made.
This is a wonderful picture of the church. You have a part to play. Peter has written, “God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another” (1 Peter 4:10 NLT).
What matters is not whether your contribution seems important to others, but whether you are faithful with what God has entrusted to you.
David Moyes
Comments