Maybe you're not a famous rock star or an admired actress but you can be something of far greater worth. Our society is crazy over idols; people we lift up above others, considering them to belong to a group that we can only stand at a distance and admire. They require security guards to protect them, secretaries to keep them organized and agents to look out for their personal interest. We hang on their every word as if it is gold. Yet most of their lives are so messed up they look like soap operas. Still, they are our idols.
The funny thing is, the grocery clerk contributes more to our lives than these over rated stars. It's nice to be entertained and we can appreciate the skill level of some of them, both acting and music, but where would we be without food? There are a lot of unsung heroes out there who faithfully show up to do a job that no one thanks them for but without them we would not survive. Think of the farmer. When is the last time you saw a farmer walk down the red carpet to the cheers of adoring fans. Yet, who do we need more than our farmers? When you think about the people we consider to be worthy of our adoration it is crazy
There are a lot of unsung heroes who remain invisible and under appreciated, who contribute to our lives every day. They don't have bank accounts worth millions of dollars and they don't get to go home to a luxury house. In fact, most struggle to survive but we need them more than we need over paid actors and musicians. I'm not saying that we don't need music, because we do. Music is an important part of our life, but so is food. Why do we idolize one and look down on the other?
The same thing happens in the Church. There are some who we idolize, lifting them up to be of greater value than others. We hang on their every word, follow them on FaceBook, rush to read their tweets. Yet, our pastors, in smaller churches, faithfully preach every week, serve their communities and contribute to our lives more than these others. Our local worship leader faithfully gives of himself for the building up of the body. The prayer warriors in our churches faithfully petition the Lord on our behalf. It is our local elders who pray over us when we are sick or listen to us when we are hurting and who faithfully teach us from the Word of God.
What about the ones who faithfully clean the church every week, or the ones who walk the streets to feed the homeless? What about the family who takes every Saturday to cook meals for the shut ins or who take the time to drive the elderly to their doctor's appointment? There are a lot of unsung heroes in the Church who go unnoticed but who are great contributors to the Body of Christ. We should not have super stars in the Body who risk becoming idols. We should not have super star musicians. We should have faithful servants who thrill at being considered faithful. We should long to hear ourselves referred to as Paul often referred to those he served with:
You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. (Colossians 1:7-8)
"A faithful minister of Christ". If we are looking to become famous in the Church we have missed the point entirely. The greatest position in the Body of Christ is the humble servant and the greatest accomplishment is faithfulness. Our goal should be to hear those words from Jesus, "Well done my good and faithful servant". That's what it is to be a superstar in God's books and that is the only thing that should matter to us. We are no different, you and me; I am not more important than you and neither are you of greater worth than me. We both are servants to the Body and warriors in the King's army. We are called to be faithful in our role which is vital for the Body of Christ. So let us serve together and encourage each other to the end. It is a pleasure to serve with you and I appreciate all you do to contribute to the lives of others, even if you are not a super star to this world..
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