It’s the first of the year, and I have hit the ground running.  This week, I did four straight days of morning sessions of Rainbows at Central Elementary, had individual or group counseling sessions everyday, planned my part of a Job Loss workshop for the weekend, led a book discussion, attended a meeting about the prayer chain, and answered I don’t know how many phone calls and emails.  All this was between helping someone be admitted to a mental health facility.  Oh, yes, this was right after Christmas and then planning and leading worship the week before.  On this snowy morning when I am playing catch up (and writing this article), I have to ask myself how it all happened.

            I know the answer before I even ask it.  It’s because I have a lot, no, rather a huge amount of support.  It comes in the form of many women who also have their hands in ministry of some form.  There is my doctor who keeps me going even though a few vertebrae in my neck are not where they should be.  There is the office staff, especially Sheila and Penny, who patiently tolerate my running in and out, up and down the stairs from my office, needing something on a moment’s notice.  There are Susan Kent and Brandy Parks, both young women with little children and God-sized work, who call or stop in to talk and get my stuff in exchange. There’s Teresa Wilson, whose spirit of joy, kind words, and love of God’s children inspire me.  There’s Brenda Dunton, whose coordination of the prayer chain I rely on for strength and intervention.  There’s Pat Davidson whose leadership in children’s education has blessed not only the ones in our church today, but also my own.  There’s Laura McCann and Leigh Ann Spicer-Parks who keep me in place on Sunday mornings. There are the woman who coordinate the food closet and stock and serve the thrift shop, who quietly serve the poor and the people that nobody else wants.  There are the guidance counselors in Seaford elementary school, who help inform parents of Rainbows.  There’s a Christian psychiatrist to whom I can refer clients with all confidence in her expertise.  There’s the lady who carries my dry cleaning out to my truck and the ones who fill my prescription and the ones who schedule my medical appointments.  There’s the woman who cuts my hair, and the Mary Kay and Avon ladies who make me look presentable. With these and many more, I am indeed blessed.

            All of this is not to leave anyone out (including men!), but it is to say that ministry, large or small, never happens in isolation.  I am blessed because the Body of Christ surrounds me.  Each one of these is different and yet so vital to me and the ministries that God has given to St. John’s Church. Yet, what is most supportive is that each in her own way serves not me, yet our Lord Jesus Christ.  He is the one who ties us together in this fold, who give us purpose in making St. John’s Church the people and presence of Christ we were created to be.  I thank God then for this whole church.

Ecclesiastes 4:

9 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:  10 If one falls down, [the other] can help…  12 Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.  A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.