While some family friends were visiting us from Florida, they were awakened by a flurry of text messages and e-mail alerts to some startling news. The building that housed their worship center and an array of community services was collapsing due to a water main leak. The news immediately included the awareness that the building had been unoccupied, and there were no injuries. Thankful.
It was what happened next, however, that caught my attention.
What Your First Response Reveals
Our friend Dave desperately wanted to be back in Florida to help church members process the event. He wanted to love on people, comfort them, and offer the ministry of presence. He even considered changing his flight plans to get back home and be among the church’s constituents.
Dave’s face writhed in compassion. No surprise there! He has pastoral gifts and effectively functions in that role. No wonder this was his first response.
Dave’s wife, Brook, had a different first reaction. She was immediately concerned about insurance, liabilities, costs, and other practical matters. One of her recent Facebook posts reads, “When I’m paying attention, I totally rock managing daily life, – me” It was hilarious that even her fourth grade daughter immediately wondered who was responsible to pay for the damage. Brook runs an administrative hub for churches, and works in that same role in her Florida church. One of her primary and natural spiritual gifts is admin.
After hearing that there had been no personal injury, my response was a little different. I wondered how this incident might be leveraged to show the community how effective this church is in ministry to the poor, downtrodden, lonely, victims of sex trafficking, and so forth. Why not a Kickstarter campaign that allows the general public to get involved in the church, remember its name, and eventually help them come to Christ. My strategy gifts and evangelistic motivation engaged fully.
When it became apparent how our various spiritual gifts triggered first responses, I wondered how others might be motivated to help. Perhaps one person would call a prayer meeting at the site of the incident. Another may gather a team to see how they church could figure out next steps in where it may meet for worship and outreach ministries. Still another might bring coffee for the on-site city emergency workers. Others would console the individual whose musical instruments were damaged by being in the building at the time of the incident.
Never Waste a Good Crisis
There’s nothing like a crisis to bring out our different capabilities, each one a gift from God. Sometimes, however, these gifts function together harmoniously, and the result is a beautiful song.
Soul music.
When there is no real team, however, there is often dissension and judgment. Questions arise, such as “which is the appropriate way to respond first?” “who brings the most important talents to the table?” and “who should lead the rescue efforts?”
Ideally, crisis helps us discover community.
How can you and your new church plant discover community and live as a team?
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