One of the great things about dogs is that they want to please their masters. Charlie is absolutely interested in pleasing me. Sometimes I wonder though, the source of his motivation.Charlie knows quite a few tricks. He can sit, shake hands, and speak. He can also roll over and play dead. He is learning how to “dance,” too. Some of these tricks he knew when we adopted him. Others he has had to learn, through much trial and error. Every time he correctly performs his tricks, he gets a treat. His performance is greatly influenced by the treat. The more he likes a particular reward, the more vehement and rigorous the tricks are. For instance, he has tiny dog biscuits. While he does like those treats, they pale in comparison to, say, a bit of meat. When offered the biscuit, his tricks lack enthusiasm and require several prompts. But, when a bit of meat is offered, the tricks come one after the other and with exuberance without even being prompted!
Sometimes, service to the church seems a little like tricks for treats. One performs tasks in hopes of a reward.
Maybe service pads a resume, or application. Perhaps it is the ego boost when others compliment us. In some cases, it could be the flawless impression that service makes on others in the community. Sometimes we even think the benefit is getting on God’s “good” side.
These are all SELF-serving attitudes that aren’t much different than Charlie’s. But, we are much smarter than dogs, and we have a greater capacity for emotional development and growth.
Ministry is exactly the opposite of self service. It literally means to attend to the needs of someone else. In the Church, ministry means even more than that. It means doing the work of God. Ministry is literally the work we are doing to attend to the needs of the people of God.
This work has many forms, as do the workers. One of God’s many blessings is that we can find the gifts He has given us and match them to the needs of our communities. We don’t all do the same work, and we don’t all do it in the same way. It takes many gifts for the many needs.
That’s quite a bit different than doing tricks to achieve treats. The service of ministry is not a chore to earn us some kind of reward; it is an honor and a privilege to serve the members of our community. A glance from a different angle helps us to see that a little better. We love one another, and we love God. Therefore, we gladly come forward and say, “Here I am, Lord.”
Charlie loves his treats, and so he performs his tricks. He is a good dog, but we are people, and we can do better than that!
Christy Cabaniss - Parish Minister
