1687 Lilac Road
Leitchfield, KY
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OUR EVANGELISTS
Dennis Tucker & James McClenny
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In three different letters Paul described the church as a body (1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Romans 12:3-8; Ephesians 4:11-16). From those verses we can learn many things about what it means to be part of the Lord's body, but for our purposes let's focus on just three.
1. Everyone is a part of the church. 2. Know the value of your part to the church and you. 3. Use your part to gift other parts of the church.
The church universal is like a body in that there is only one church, but it is made up of many members, individuals who have been baptized into Christ and become a part of His body, the church. Even though we’re not all alike, we all have a part in helping the local church we’ve joined carry out its God given function.
Know the value of your part to the church and you. Every part of the body is valuable to the whole, so work with others as they work with you. Look up to instead of down on your brothers and sisters in Christ. Let it teach you how to serve and grow up into a mature believer in Christ.
Finally, use your part to gift other parts of the church. You could be the person who smiles and makes a brother’s day. Or the one who speaks the truth in love that turns a straying sister back to the Lord.
James McClenny
The following list of 75 things to be done in the body, compiled by Reagan McClenny and the Timberland Drive church of Christ in Lufkin TX, is included to assist you in using your part to gift other parts of the church. Feel free to copy and use it as is, or revise it to fit the local church you’re a member of for its intended purpose: To Glorify God by Transforming Sinners into Saints.
75 things to Be Done in the Body
1. Host and/or organize a Bible study outside of the regular meeting times.
2. Pray, read, meditate, and study daily for personal growth necessary to “bear your own load” and be in a position to help others spiritually.
3. Drop off groceries or a prepared supper for a struggling family, a “frazzled momma,” new parents, a college student, a widow/widower, a family mourning a loss, etc.
4. Greet and seek to get to know new Christians and Christians new to our number. Do whatever you can to welcome them.
5. Greet and seek to get to know regular visitors to our number. Do whatever you can to welcome them.
6. Take the initiative to contact brothers or sisters who were not at the regular assemblies. Do so in love, giving the “benefit of the doubt,” and seeking to help how you can.
7. Emphasize spiritual things to “our” children—the first line of evangelism!
8. Continue to teach Bible classes as you get older instead of “retiring” for others to take over. Don’t waste your wisdom!
9. Go to teachers to offer specific help with the preparations for Bible classes (making copies, cutting out illustrations, etc.).
10. Volunteer to teach (or help teach) Bible class. It’s good for everyone (the congregation, the kids, the parents, and you)!
11. Volunteer to help in the development of Bible class material for the new curriculum.
12. Be willing to listen to and understand your brother or sister before offering any advice (and realize that sometimes advice is not what was sought or needed).
13. Attend every funeral or visitation you can for the loved ones of brethren.
14. Take the time to have meaningful conversations with those who are sometimes “overlooked” or are reserved in personality.
15. Confess your sins to each other and pray for one another that you may be healed—spiritually!
16. Don’t allow a brother or sister’s sin with which they have long struggled to become “taboo” to the point that you don’t ask them how they are doing in that regard. Ask in kindness, seeking to help.
17. Have patience with those who are weak; be willing & quick to forgive.
18. Go to a brother or sister who is in sin and confront them in meekness and love for their soul.
19. Withdraw your fellowship from a brother or sister when instructed by the scriptures to do so (following the direction of the elders).
20. Avoid arguments and divisions over “doubtful things,” that are not matters of faith.
21. Meet/text/talk regularly with someone who is struggling with specific sin to check on them and hold them accountable.
22. Volunteer to do yard work/house work/etc. for widows, sick, overwhelmed, etc.
23. Provide labor when it is needed to help others move houses, cut fallen trees, run new sewer lines, etc.
24. Encourage others by attending services faithfully, even when it is difficult.
25. Mind your influence. Be a good example of how a Christian acts, talks, thinks, and worships to those who look up to you.
26. Provide rides to doctor’s appointments, treatments, and tests, especially for those who are uncomfortable driving in the city.
27. Be willing and ready to give when there are special financial needs.
28. Read the “reports” we receive from men preaching the gospel with whom we have fellowship to stay up to date with their efforts.
29. Support those with whom we have fellowship in the preaching of the gospel with your prayers, contribution, and notes of encouragement.
30. Pray daily that Christians (including you!) might have doors of opportunity in evangelism, wisdom to see them, and courage to walk through them.
31. Hand out “business cards” with the church information to people you meet and invite them to services.
32. Host a Bible study or devotional in your home, especially the “regular” devotionals for the young people.
33. Warmly welcome a new visitor and get to know them, have them fill out a visitor’s card, and talk to the elders and evangelists about who they are and what their “story” is.
34. Invite a visitor you’ve gotten to know out to eat or into your home to get to know them better.
35. Devote a Sunday to sit somewhere different in the auditorium to “catch up” with the brethren in there.
36. Volunteer to cook part of a meal for a family after a funeral.
37. Pray for our elders, deacons, and evangelists in their work.
38. Take the time to thank those who lead an insightful prayer, lead us in an uplifting song service, or have good thoughts in teaching.
39. Go and read scripture (especially Psalms) to those under hospice care.
40. Be mindful of brethren who might need special attention and encouragement at certain times throughout the year, especially those without family nearby (the holiday season, Veteran’s Day, anniversaries of events, etc.)
41. Pay attention to help/encourage those who have lost their marriage partner through death/divorce.
42. Offer to babysit for an evening for a mother who needs a break, or so parents can go on a “date night!”
43. Actively seek to help others with projects with their house, car, etc. if you have the expertise.
44. Have others into your home for “non-spiritual” occasions.
45. Send via text, call, or note your thanks for the faithfulness and work of a brother or sister.
46. Forgive others. Have grace when you’ve been wronged. Let things go when they don’t matter.
47. Pray for brethren by name, especially when they’re going through spiritual struggles, not just when they’re going through physical hardship or sickness. Pray for their joy, growth, and faithfulness.
48. Go (and offer and give rides) to services, devotionals, gospel meetings, and lectureships.
49. Deliver a care package for the family stuck sitting at the hospital.
50. Send via text, call, or note encouraging and edifying thoughts and scriptures to someone going through a hard time. Take the time to give a list of topical scriptures for them to read on their own.
51. Smile, be friendly, and have joy in Christ!
52. Take the time to notice others countenance and ask how others are doing with purpose and sincerity. If you “read between the lines” that something isn’t going well, follow up with them!
53. Be patient with & seek to help mothers with children at the assembly.
54. Speak well of others, exchange compliments, be positive about the church/brethren/leadership/evangelism, etc.
55. Pass along a book of a spiritual nature that has helped you.
56. Pass down clothes/household items to other Christians who need them.
57. Run errands for the sick/shut-in/widowed/new parents, etc.
58. Support brethren in their secular businesses whenever possible.
59. Teach someone else something you know how to do (cooking, carpentry, sewing, handiwork, how to use technology, mechanical, etc.).
60. Sit with the family in the waiting room when someone is having surgery.
61. Be willing to share your experiences of faith (good and bad) if it will help another.
62. Speak of God and the things of God in everyday conversation with other Christians. Don’t be hesitant to bring up spiritual things.
63. Sign up for a month to lock the building at the end of services.
64. Mind your “social media” influence and be a force for good/Christ instead of a stumbling block to others.
65. Give announcements with empathy and efficiency.
66. Serve at the Lord’s Table with a focused mind/give the Lord’s Supper talk.
67. Partake of the Communion with the reverence & discernment it demands.
68. Sing out with appropriate emotion (most often, JOY!) in worship to God and in teaching and encouragement to your brethren.
69. Give of your means cheerfully, as you’ve purposed in your heart.
70. Be actively engaged in public prayer (consider carefully what you say when you lead, knowing you are praying for everyone, and listening intently to say “amen” when others are praying publicly).
71. Preach the Truth of the Word of God in love and wisdom, no matter the consequences.
72. Be an active listener to sermons to the encouragement of the speaker and those who are around you. Take notes to remember the lesson for personal application and teaching of others.
73. Read your Bible daily so you might be “ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you.”
74. Volunteer to “adopt” one of our recent graduates as they begin their adulthood. Take the time to establish a relationship with them, check on them, and encourage them.
75. Seek out and be with other Christians in secular environments to encourage and be encouraged (school, work, organizations, ball-teams, etc.).
Reagan McClenny
Timberland Drive church of Christ
" And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD,
choose you this day whom ye will serve; . . .
but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
Joshua 24:15 (KJV)
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