The Church is meant to be the Hope of the World, a light that shines bright to a world in need. It is the organized gathering of people created and ordained by Jesus to help make Him known. As Christ follower’s we can easily know this in our mind and heart, yet struggle to reflect this knowledge in our actions.
Whether you are a staff member at a church, a volunteer leader of teams or groups or simply a regular attender you have the ability to be a champion for your local church. God created you to be a part and to play a part.
Your church will not be all God intends for it to be unless you decide to champion it. (Click to tweet) There are a number of ways you can tangibly express being a champion at your local church. Here are the top 7 that come to my mind today
- Champion Each Service – anytime your church opens the doors for a service it is saying to the local community, “we love you, God loves you, and we want to tell you of that love.” Every service is unique and every service matters. Treat every service like it is the one that will be a difference maker in someone’s life. Is the posture of your heart & habits that you would serve and lead whenever your church holds a service?
- Champion Life-Change – moments like altar calls and baptisms are so important in the life of a church because they are clear moments when we can celebrate people going from death to life. Around 12Stone we talk about celebrating like all of heaven does because someone has entered the Kingdom of God. When it comes to championing life change I would encourage you to be the loudest person in the room. Are you celebrating loudly and passionately during moments of life-change such as altar calls and baptisms?
- Champion a Heart of Prayer & Worship – people learn to pray and worship with great authenticity by observing the leaders around them. Chose to model the passion and abandon you hope people will have in prayer and times of worship through music. Do you attend a service each week where you can engage and model a heart for prayer and worship?
- Champion Your Teammates – the Church is the Body of Christ; it is one in nature. No one in a right state of mind would intentionally harm part of their body and think it has zero effect on the whole. The comfort or difficulty you experience in your local church has a lot to do with each person’s attitude towards one another. Do you have the backs of everyone you serve alongside?
- Champion Next Steps – when people engage with God they begin to experience change. While changes of mindset and heart are underneath the surface they often have a natural outer expression. Be prepared to point people in the right directions and guide them to the right next step based on the work God is doing within them. Do you know how to move people forward in their spiritual journey at your church?
- Champion an Outward Focus – anytime people gather there is a natural pull for them to become inward focused; exclusive in nature. We model an outward focus by caring well for people in the room while giving our greatest attention towards serving and reaching those not in the room. Are you actively engaging with people outside the walls of your church with the hope of introducing them to Jesus?
- Champion Giving Back to God – yes, I am talking about your money and your church. Really, I am talking about God’s money He has entrusted to you for a season. Do our hearts follow our money or does our money follow our hearts? Do you prayerfully and joyfully tithe to God through your local church?
This list is by no means exhaustive – what other ways do you go about championing your local church?
Cory Lebovitz 