Introduction
We have read, “When the Day of Pentecost had come, [the followers of Jesus] were all together in one place”. So the word of the day is certainly “together”. “Together” is a great word – we were all designed as relational people. Whether it is a church community, or a sporting club, or any other organisation – the power for effectiveness and great results … comes from being together, staying together, and working together.
2000 years ago, when Jesus wanted to bestow power and effectiveness upon the disciples of the early church through the Holy Spirit, he asked them to … be together, and stay together. There was about 120 of them at this point. It was as these people committed to gathering together … that they would be able to effectively work together. The book of Acts goes on to tell … that the outcome for the church that day was fantastic.
As the first followers of Jesus continued to spend time together, share together, and work as a team … they would develop the sort of cooperation that would make a real difference in the world around them (serving people in need). These people grew in their capabilities and leadership as they shared with and encouraged one another. This remains a great example, one which, sadly, has not always been appreciated in the church.
In our time, in our particular locality, we come together, into our various community groups of choice, and into joint causes that are so much bigger than any individual cause. It is here that teamwork becomes so important. And, whether we are part of a church or a sporting club or both, or any other group – developing a good level of teamwork … depends on many things.
- Sacrifice
A couple of those things are: sacrifice and respect, i.e. sacrifice made to a joint cause, and respect for those who are with us (in that cause). To create a good team approach, whatever the organisation might be, there needs to be a willingness to sacrifice some of our personal desires for the sake of the common good and the whole. Not everything can be the way we want it personally to be! Not everything is bound to suit our convenience. We have to be able to see that, for the well-being and good of the particular team we are part of, and for the ultimate success of whatever our collective vision is – we have to put aside some of our own preferences and go with a majority view.
We need to be actively open and flexible like this. The question to always ask ourselves will be – how can I add value to my team?! Sometimes, whether it be a church or a sporting club or another community organisation, we will get a reasonable say into the direction that such a group is taking. It is great when that is able to happen, and we feel that we have been listened to, and our ideas have been taken into account. On other occasions, especially in times of crisis or urgency, we will just have to trust our leaders – that they will come up with, more often than not, the right solutions and decisions.
There is another level of sacrifice too … when we talk about working together as a team. Not just giving up some of our preferences, but also giving ourselves completely over to team goals – buying wholly into them – putting the team ahead of ourselves. Sometimes, punching the ball from behind is the team play, rather than attempting the spectacular mark. We come to really admire those almost unnoticed one-percenters (sometimes called ‘sacrificial acts’) … that open an opportunity for another teammate. On the netball court, instead of expecting praise ourselves, we offer encouragement to another. In the church, we would want to offer support to others wherever we can.
There are many examples in our town, in our football and netball club, on and off the field, of people who sacrifice for others. And, we just remembered significant sacrifice at Anzac Day services here in town. In the church, we have also just remembered at Easter … the ultimate sacrifice made by our leader Jesus on a cross … for the forgiveness of the world. Jesus might have opted for a more comfortable path, but instead went the way he knew was best for the bigger picture. Such acts of sacrifice, the historical ones, and the present ones, are not just for us to notice … and remark upon, but also for us to emulate … in each of our fields of endeavour.
- Respect
Successful times of working together … also depend upon the respect we should form for those who are in the same team as us. In most community groups, which are open to all-comers, we find a great variety of personality types, backgrounds, talents, workplaces, temperaments, personal interests, behavioural quirks, ability levels, experience, ages, genders, etc. We all need to respect one another’s humanity and personhood! The good churches, and the good sporting clubs … are able to find creative ways of blending all this diversity together.
The goal would be for everyone to feel welcome; and also respected for the particular contribution they could make. The great joy of any community organisation … would be to blend together a whole lot of uniqueness – seeing a collection of unique people come together under one banner to achieve great results. If everyone was the same, or you tried to manipulate sameness through exclusion, then the result would likely be … pretty unremarkable.
The apostle Paul, who wrote quite a bit of the Bible, compared the church to a human body – seeing all the different unique diverse parts of the human body – arms, legs, eyes, ears, hands, feet, etc, etc – coming together to make up a really effective functioning whole. A great analogy for any team. It’s like fitting all the bits of a jigsaw puzzle together in the correct way. For success, we need different types of talents, personalities and experiences – all brought together into solidarity under a common goal.
We also need to allow and nurture others to play their role. Encouragement is always the key … in showing respect and confidence in others – such that they can become successful contributors. Mutual respect builds trust in one another’s intentions and commitment to the cause, eventually leading to a higher morale, and the space in which each one can be honest and happily hear the truth about their performance.
Another aspect of respect, is a thorough appreciation of the group we are a part of – its ethos and values, and its role in the general community. The church should be providing a hopeful and positive vision of how life can be lived. As well as seeking success on the field, a sporting club can have goals around the development of character and leadership, the fulfilment of potential, and also making a strong contribution to the wider community. Both Bright Church of Christ and United Bright Football and Netball Club seek to make such positive contributions to community, and sometimes together!
Conclusion
So, embracing sacrifice and respect … helps us all to work together well in our particular groups, and also builds leadership. Just as good leadership motivates great team effort, a great team effort encourages and motivates the best leadership to emerge amongst the team. Whether this is on the sporting field, or within the outgoing ministries of the church, being and working together can bring great satisfaction, joy and happiness.
Where we might have to actively decide to embrace sacrifice and respect initially, sometimes against the grain – working together in community can eventually become so enjoyable and satisfying, that it begins to just happen naturally – because it simply makes sense, and it brings its own rewards. Good community is always about rising above individualism toward the great ideal of team! And, genuine teamwork and good community … stands out like stars on a clear night!
No comments:
Post a Comment