Volunteer Recruitment Sunday: Building the Foundation
This Sunday is a special day for our church. It is a volunteer recognition Sunday. We'll be taking time to honor the time and energy so many people invest into the life of our church. And... we'll have cake.
One of the oddest things about the church is that it is a volunteer organization. We don't motivate people through promotions, money, or cohesion. Christians are motivated by an odd mixture of love for Christ, a passion for the lost, a sense of community, and sometimes just stubborn commitment to a local church.
I came to Cascade just after COVID, and there was a group of people whose sheer tenacity kept the church held together. Since then, we've seen a slow but steady growth. The church is becoming increasingly vibrant, and it's an honor to see what God is doing.
Now, we have a few big projects ahead of us. With a growing crop of young people in our church, the Council and I want to start a Sunday School class this fall for people of all ages to make sure we're all deeply learning the story of God's grace. We have elementary-age kids, adults who are new to the faith, and people from other denominations who want to learn more about Reformed theology.
Add to this a growing community around the church who don't yet know Jesus. Every month I notice new construction popping up in the area and new people moving in. We need to train the members of our church to reach out, share their faith, and share the gospel of Christ. We can't grow our church by bringing people in from other churches; the goal is to reach the lost.
This Sunday, as we appreciate our current volunteers, we'll also be asking how the rest of us can step into these areas of service.
Honoring the Foundation Layers
Before we talk about the future, let's pause and genuinely acknowledge the incredible work already being done. We are immensely grateful for the individuals who consistently step up, often quietly and behind the scenes, to ensure Cascade Church thrives. You know who you are. You arrive early, stay late, take on tasks without being asked, and pour out your energy week after week. It's often said that in volunteer organizations, about 20% of the people do 80% or more of the work. While that can sometimes feel like a heavy burden on a few, it also speaks volumes about the dedication and heart of those who are currently serving. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you. Your steadfast commitment has been, and continues to be, the bedrock upon which God is building this vibrant community.
But as our community grows and God opens new doors for ministry, we're at a point where those "few" cannot carry the load alone, nor should they. The health and vitality of our church family depend on every member finding their place and contributing. We're not just looking for bodies to fill slots; we're looking for hearts eager to serve, to participate in what God is doing here at Cascade.
The Cracked 42nd Floor and the Basement Problem
There is a true story of a high-rise apartment in New York City that suddenly developed a large and troubling crack on the 42nd floor. The building manager didn’t know exactly what to do, so he called in the architect.
When the manager was supposed to meet the architect, he went up to the 42nd floor, but couldn’t find the architect. Puzzled, he called around and finally found out that the architect was down in the 6th basement.
The manager went down there and said, “Don’t you know that we have a crack on the 42nd floor? I’ve been waiting for you there for half an hour.”
The architect responded, “You may have a crack on the 42nd floor, but your problem is down here.” Pointing, he showed the manager a gaping hole in the wall of the basement.
This is a true story. One of the security guards at the apartment wanted to build a garage but didn’t have money for the supplies. So every day, he would go down to the 6th basement and chisel out a few bricks and put them in his duffle bag. He had been doing this every day for 5 years.
Taking away this support from the foundation had weakened the structure enough that it led to the crack on the 42nd floor.
Today, as we think about ministry, we face many issues – cracks on the 42nd floor that beg for our immediate attention:
We need to recruit volunteers.
We need programs for our kids, our junior high-kids, our teens, our families, and our seniors.
We have to juggle childcare schedules, cookie volunteers, and ushers.
We have to be careful about who is “in the loop” and who doesn’t think they are.
We have to ensure that outreach & evangelism are a big priority as we grow.
These are all real issues, but they are indeed cracks on the 42nd floor. We can’t just put a coat of spackle over those issues, slap on a new coat of paint, and hope the problems don’t resurface. We have to deal with the basement issues.
Looking at Romans 12:1-8, the Apostle Paul helps us identify four foundational "basement issues" that we must resolve if our personal ministries, and our ministry as a church, are going to be truly effective.
1. Do I Approach Ministry as a Consumer or as a Sacrifice? (Romans 12:1-2)
One of the greatest obstacles for ministry today is a consumer mindset. The pattern of this world tells us to get the most for our money, to maximize our investments, and above all else, to remember: it’s all about you.
Think about the "Wal-Mart Mindset." It closes out specialty stores, offering more products, more services, and lower costs. And while that might be great for your shopping list, the result in other areas can be terrible. Wal-Mart, for instance, is the country of China’s #1 customer, and a lot of the clothes bought from Wal-Mart or Target don’t hold up. This consumer-driven approach, if allowed to creep into the church, can be profoundly damaging.
When we approach the church with a consumer mentality, we risk:
Believing You Can Do Everything: The truth is, no church can do everything. We could list dozens of worthy ministries: Nursery, Toddlers, Children’s Worship, Sunday School, VBS, Jr. High, High School, Post-High, Seniors, Singles, Single Moms, Recovery Programs, Accountability Groups, Men’s Ministry, Women’s Fellowship, Couples Classes. Trying to offer every program imaginable creates a diffuse and unsustainable ministry.
Thinking Size Is a Solution: A good friend of mine pastors a church of over 2,000 people. You know what he still deals with? Volunteer recruitment. People not showing up at their scheduled time to serve. People leaving the church occasionally because they didn’t have the right program mix for their tastes. Size doesn't eliminate the fundamental human challenge of commitment.
If we approach ministry as consumers, or if we approach it trying to satisfy consumers, we will lose!
The Gospel, however, turns us in the opposite direction. Instead of being a consumer, we are called to be consumed. To be sacrifices. Paul urges us, "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will." (Romans 12:1-2)
Notice the "Therefore" at the beginning of the passage? We become sacrifices instead of consumers by remembering the mercy we have received. We are not sacrifices so that we can receive mercy; we are living sacrifices because we have already received mercy. As Romans 6:13, 19 says, "Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness... For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification."
Wellington Boone famously said, "The hard part isn’t getting on the altar, its STAYING on the altar!" This is the call to a life of worshipful service, not selective consumption.
2. Am I in Unity, Under Authority, and Aligned with the Body? (Romans 12:4-5)
Paul continues, "Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others." (Romans 12:4-5)
If you want a quick course in Ecclesiology (the study of the church), go stand in front of the mirror. Notice how you only have one body? This illustrates the principles of Unity, Alignment, and Authority within the church.
And notice how different all the parts of your body are? For me, even my two eyes, two ears are slightly different. This diversity might give fits to a barber when I get my hair cut, but this diversity makes the body functional. This diversity in the church also makes us functional. As Ray Stedman noted, "People in general don’t like differences, they prefer clones. Even in the Church, people want to turn out Christians like so many sausages. If this happens, you’ll find that no matter where you slice them, they are still full of bologna!”
The beauty of the body of Christ is its diverse unity. As 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 so vividly describes:
"For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit." (vv. 12-13)
No part can say, "I do not belong to the body," or "I have no need of you." (vv. 15-21)
"But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose." (v. 18)
God has composed the body "that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another." (vv. 24-25)
This means that our service is never isolated. It's always in relationship to the whole body, under the authority of Christ, and aligned with His purposes for Cascade Church. We are individual members, but we are one body.
3. What is My Specific Gift? (Romans 12:6-8)
This leads us to the exciting truth that God has wired each of us in a unique way so that we can make a real contribution to the church. Wired into each and every one of us is a Spiritual Gift.
A Spiritual Gift is defined as: The special enabling grace God has given to the average Christian which enables him or her to perform God’s work in the church. These are not merely natural talents, but distinct empowerments by the Holy Spirit. They include gifts given by constitution, talent, birth, education, and other circumstances, as well as extraordinary gifts immediately conferred by the Holy Spirit. The Greek word charismata itself points to "grace gifts."
Everyone Has One: I know what you’re thinking, because I’ve heard it a hundred times: “Not me. God can use just about everyone, but not me.” But 1 Corinthians 7:7 clearly states, "Each person has his or her own gift from God." Not everyone has the same gift (thank God!), but everyone has an important, unique gift designed for the building up of the church.
Their Purpose: These gifts are not for our own glorification, but for the building up of the church and the equipping of the saints. As Ephesians 4:11-13 tells us: "And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ."
Consider our new Sunday School. The best time to equip and develop someone for ministry is often in childhood. Loving teachers who pour themselves into the lives of our little ones are indispensable. Think about it: How many of you accepted Christ before you were 10? Investing in our children's spiritual formation is an investment in the future of the church and the spread of the Gospel. It’s a vital area where many gifts – teaching, administration, helps, hospitality, encouragement – will be needed to bring this vision to life.
Conclusion: Becoming Part of the Foundation
On the 42nd floor there may be cracks. But the solution is in the basement. This Sunday, we're asking each of you to consider how you can be part of the foundation.
I will find out my Spiritual Gift. This week, spend time in prayer about this. Take out a blank piece of paper and write down the things you’ve most enjoyed doing, your passions in life. Ask someone who knows you well what they think your gifts are. Resources like "Shaped for Serving God" can also be helpful.
I will attend the Ministry Fair on [Insert Date - e.g., March 6th]. Next weekend, we will have a chance for you to apply your gifts. After this week of reflection and figuring out what gifts you have, you will have an opportunity to find ways to use them. From children’s ministry to hospitality, from leading a small group to helping with outreach events in the community, there is something for you to do with your gifts. We particularly need passionate individuals for our new Sunday School, but also to strengthen every other area of ministry.
I will serve God and His church as a Living Sacrifice. This one is a blanket statement to remember that the foundation matters. No more consumer mentality, no more service as a way to build your self-worth. You have been bought by Christ; it’s a done deal. You are a living sacrifice and will stay on the altar. You are a member of the unified body of Christ. You will be a part of the foundation of Christ’s church!
We are excited about what God is doing at Cascade, and we eagerly anticipate seeing how He will continue to empower each of you to contribute to His work.
-Pastor Tim
