Have you played a team sport? Have you been a member of a band? Have you worked on a team project? What did you learn from your experience? Did you discover there were different personalities and different skills coming together for a common goal?
Being part of a team, if the team is going to be successful, each member must put their skills to work for the betterment of the team. Personalities may not always fit, but selfishness has no place in a successful team. Egos must get set aside. Focusing on the goal must be top priority.
We have seen successful teams and wonder how they can sustain it. In baseball, the Yankees have experienced periods of extended success, winning multiple World Series championships in just a few years. The Patriots did the same in football, just has the Chiefs have done over the past few years. These teams have one thing in common. When they step onto the field, they are a cohesive team of individuals, all striving for the same goal.
We can say the same for successful bands. Whether it is the New York Philharmonic or the President’s Own, each member is individually talented yet can only be successful by playing their part in the larger group. The best trumpet player cannot perform every part of a song. It requires the clarinet, trombone, tuba, saxophone, percussion, and a conductor to make the music beautiful.
The same is true of the body of Christ. Each of us have talents and skills to contribute to the work God has prepared for the church. It is only when everyone comes together as a cohesive unit, setting aside personal ambition, and using our individual skills that we can be successful. Each of us have been given gifts by the Holy Spirit. God has placed each of us where we are for a purpose. Working together, we can accomplish the mission he has given us.
I pray we all set aside our ego to work together. I pray we know we have gifts given to us by the Holy Spirit. I pray each one of us seek to be part of the team, or body of Christ, to accomplish the mission God has given the local church. Set aside your ego. Know your gifts. Be part of the team. Be part of the body. Put your skills to work to accomplish God’s mission.
1 Corinthians 12:27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
Marty Pressey 