God is calling you to service. It’s probably not a loud voice; more likely it’s a subtle nudge or a gnawing in your soul, but He is calling you to serve in the local church.
- “But take careful heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul”—Joshua 22:5 (emphasis added).
Changed people serve people, and serving is essential to who we are as believers. Serving allows us to love and see others in a different light. It is a vital part of being living proof of a loving God to a watching world. It is also a necessary part of living The A-Life, the abundant life through Christ Jesus (John 10:10).
Put Your Yes on the Table
“I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: ‘Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?’ Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”—Isaiah 6:8
Serving with the local church may mean accepting God’s call to live sent to other nations, but for most of us, our call is simply to live sent to our local church and our community where we can serve as the hands and feet of Jesus.
This may look like getting up early on Sunday mornings to make coffee and greet people in the lobby with a welcoming smile. It might mean loving on the babies in the nursery so parents can participate in worship and hear the message. Maybe your calling is to check in on the elderly couple who sit near you at church. Are they struggling to keep the lawn mowed, the house clean, or the electric bill paid?
Maybe the Holy Spirit is stirring your heart about caring for people who are homeless, imprisoned, orphaned, or in the Foster Care system. Or maybe you feel a call to plant a church or help launch a new campus. In His wisdom and love, God leads us exactly to where He wants us to serve. It is our responsibility to be His willing, humble servants who shut out the other noise to hear His call.
Be Open to His Call
To have a servant’s heart means our life is focused on glorifying God, not ourselves, and often that requires sacrifice. When we are offering ourselves to God in submission for service, we must be open to do four things:
- Hear His call
- Understand
- Accept
- Obey
For Christians, our only choice is to respond to God’s call with a “Yes.” He promises to equip us with the tools we need to fulfill His mission. His provisions might include the enthusiasm, the talent or skill, and the spiritual gifts necessary. Our job is to let go of things that hinder our service to God and give Him our obedience and humble surrender.
“Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”—Philippians 2:3-4
Follow Jesus
Our best example to follow is Jesus Himself, who came not to be served, but to serve (Mark 10:45). Serving Jesus means serving people. “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”—Matthew 25:37-40
As committed followers, we are coworkers with Christ. We are called to serve with Him, not on our own, but through the power of the Holy Spirit working in and through us. Serving in the local church is not necessarily about what we’re doing but who we are becoming in Christ. Discovering our role in the local church body deepens our relationship with God as we experience His power working in us and equipping us.
Serving with the local church can deepen our understanding of God’s Word, our relationship with other believers, and our relationship with Him. When serving feels hard, we can take heart from the encouragement of Galatians 6:9-10, “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
Deepen Your Relationship with God Through Service in the Local Church
Serving has the power to deepen your relationship with God as you rely on Him for the strength, patience, and love you need to meet people where they are. Here are four ways to deepen your relationship with God by serving in the local church:
1.) Put away pride and selfishness
“For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”—Galatians 5:13
We are called to serve others selflessly, humbly, and lovingly. 1 Corinthians 13:5 says that love does not seek its own way. Serving challenges us to put aside our own interests and care for the needs of others.
2.) Build faith and intimacy with God
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”—John 15:4-5
Our service for God can only properly flow from a life with God. If we want to serve in the local church wholeheartedly, we must prioritize intimacy with God.
3.) Discover your spiritual gifts
“There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all.”—1 Corinthians 12:4-6
Although each believer has different spiritual gifts, they are all equipped by the same God. Whether you serve in kids’ ministry, greet people at the door, sing on the worship team, or clean up the chairs after service, you have the same Holy Spirit and God working in you as the other believers around you.
4.) Use your gifts to glorify God
“As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.”—1 Peter 4:10-11
God gives us the ability to use our spiritual gifts. We cannot use them to serve the local church without Him equipping and filling us.
5.) Demonstrate your love for God through obedience
”Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.’”—Luke 9:23
Serving in the local church will require you to sacrifice your desires, time, talent, and treasure, but that is how we follow Jesus’ model of servanthood. You demonstrate your love for God by obeying His call to serve others.
Find Your Place in the Local Church
God's call to serve in the local church is an invitation to a deeper relationship with Him and a more abundant life. By putting our “Yes” on the table, being open to His call, and following the example of Jesus, we can discover our spiritual gifts, deepen our understanding of God's Word, and experience His power working in and through us. Serving is an opportunity that allows us to demonstrate our love for God and make a tangible difference in the lives of others. So, find your place, embrace the opportunity, and step into the joy of serving in your local church.