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The person who preaches and stands behind the pulpit is no better than the person who cleans the toilets. The person who sings the solo is no better than the person who manages the church landscaping. The person who directs the choir is no better than the person who works in the nursery. The person who is the pastor’s son is no better than the person who is related to no one. The person who is the choir director’s cousin is no better than the person who is the janitor’s son. The musician is no better than the usher.
Sometimes in the church we put some people on levels that are higher than others. We tend to put the person who preaches on a level that is untouchable. We put the choir director on a pedestal. We put the praise singer and soloist on this level that is above others. They become untouchable. We become like the scripture in James: “suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person but you say to the poor one, you can stand over there, or else sit on the floor…” (James 2:2-3) We do this in many ways. Through our actions we state that the preacher is better than the usher, the choir director better than the janitor, the musician better than the Sunday school teacher, the soloist better than the greeter. It is unfortunate that we do this.
I have such admiration for those who work behind the scenes. They are truly people I look up to. The people who do things without the applause, and without the recognition, they are people that I think are doing so much. They are my heroes. There are so many people in my church who do things without the recognition. I wish I could name you personally here but I would probably miss someone. But I personally want to say that I admire you so much. You are doing great things for God. The prayer warrior who comes to church early in the morning, you may not get the applause that the preacher gets, but I admire you so much. The person who works with the juniors and who opens your home for those who don’t have a loving home, you might not get the recognition that the soloist gets but I admire you so much. The person in charge of the visitor ministry and outreach, you might not get the acclaim that the choir director gets, but I admire you so much. The person who cleans the church, you might not get the applause that the choir gets, but I admire you so much. The person who does the media and sound you might not get the recognition that others get, but you are doing great things. The usher and the greeter you might not get applause, but I admire you so much. Everyone who works behind the scenes, you are doing so much, and you might not always get man’s applause but you have God’s attention. You might think that what you are doing is not making a difference, but I tell you, you are making such a huge impact. I admire your servant’s heart. I admire the hard work and dedication you have. I admire you all so much.
I think those who have a ministry in the spotlight can learn a lot from those who work behind the scenes. Those who are on the platform can learn a lot from those who are not on the platform. Those who garner the applause from man can learn a lot from those who do things without applause. They should be our heroes. They should be who we look up to. They should be our inspiration. And so this blog is two-fold. Number One I want to personally acknowledge those who work without the acknowledgement. Number Two I want to remind us that we need to check the direction we, as a church, are going. We need to stop placing certain positions on levels higher than others. We need to stop being consumed, or more specifically obsessed with titles and positions and platforms. We need to learn from those who do things without applause because their motivations are pure.