Labor Day: Celebration of the Church Worker
Today we celebrate church workers—the laity.
They work in one of the harshest work environments ever!
No pay, no benefits, little recognition, no opportunity for advancement—except to take on more responsibility with no earthly reward.
They have multiple bosses. The people, the pastors—even community members who don’t belong to the church.
When there is conflict of any degree, the church volunteer can count on bearing the blame—often behind closed doors, without their knowledge and with no ability to defend.
The entire structure of the Church relies on their offerings—heart, mind, muscle and dollar.
They’ll plan their family vacations and holidays around what’s going on at church. They’ll sacrifice their summers to running programs for the neighborhood. They will gather ideas and spark energy. They wield a broom and sing in the choir and bring an extra dish to the potluck. They will sit through meetings, chafing to get to work.
They are the torch bearers for mission.
They will have a tough time accepting any Church vision that is not mission-oriented. They will be criticized—even mocked— for this.
Church is not a social club to them—although professional church leaders might use those very words to discredit them.
They will ignore the criticism and come back. Sunday after Sunday. Weekday after weekday. Summer after summer. Holiday after holiday. Potluck after potluck.
They will be taken for granted.
The American church volunteer.
Today, trade the pew for the beach chair! Relax. Enjoy your day.