A New York family bought a ranch out West, where they intended to raise cattle. Friends visited and asked if the ranch had a name."Well," said the would-be cattleman,I wanted to name it the Bar-J. My wife favored Suzy-Q. One son wanted it called the Flying-W. The other son preferred to call it the Lazy-Y. So we ended up calling it the Bar-J-Suzy Q Flying-W Lazy Y Ranch."

"But where are your cattle," inquired the friends. The owner replied,"None of them survived the branding."

Unfortunately, this comical story accurately depicts the saga of many local churches. There are so many opinions on how the church should operate, the styles of worship services it should offer, and where its budgeted money should be directed, that the end result is a congregation that is impotent, making very little impact in its community.

We've been studying"The Good to Great Church." We recognize that Chapin Baptist Church is very diverse in its membership of 1600-plus. We agree that our church could be classified as a good church. But how do we make the move to become a great church? We already dealt with two specific ways. We must protect the unity of our church by acting in love toward other members, by refusing to gossip and by following the leaders. And then we must share the responsibility of our church by praying for its growth, by inviting the unchurched to attend, and by warmly welcoming those who visit.

Today we're going to add another ingredient that is essential if we are to become a great church. We must serve the ministry of our church. Each Sunday during this series I have invited some of our members to share their story of what brought them to Chapin Baptist and what God has done in their lives since joining here. So this morning I have invited {Linda Shirer, Suzanne Lee, Woody Wagers, Jr.} to come and tell some of their story. {Linda, Suzanne, Woody} represent an excellent model of what it means to serve the ministry of our church.

So what does that mean…serve the ministry of my church? It means three things. First, I serve the ministry of my church by discovering my gifts and talents. The Bible says,"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others" (1 Peter 4:10). I want you to notice four things about this verse. Let's pulverize this verse so we can understand what God is telling us. First, notice the words each one. That means everyone who claims to be a follower of Jesus Christ. It means every member of Chapin Baptist Church. It means you. It's not singling out the pastors, the teachers, the deacons and the leaders. It's singling out the person in the pew—YOU!

Second, notice the main verb in the sentence—should use. In fact, let's look at this sentence using fifth grade grammar. The subject is each one. The verb is should use. Should use what? The direct object is gift. Each one, every follower of Christ, should use his/her gifts. We use a slogan around here a lot. It says,"Everyone is a minister." But it's more than a slogan. It's a belief. It's a part of our culture. It's who we are. We believe that every Christian should be engaged in some type of ministry.

The third thing to notice about this verse is the phrase whatever gift. This statement implies that we all have gifts. And if you're still not convinced of this, let me know because I can also show you from Romans, 1 Corinthians, and Ephesians the same biblical teaching. God has given gifts to the body of Christ, the church. Every believer has at least one gift. I believe most have multiple gifts. But regardless of what those gifts are, use them.

Fourth, notice how the gifts are to be used. We are to use them to serve others. That's the theme I'm trying to teach you today. We become a great church by serving the ministry of our church. How? By discovering and using whatever gifts God has given you to serve others. But you say,"I don't know what my gift is." That's no excuse because we provide many opportunities for members to discover their gifts. In fact, we have a class going on right now on Sunday evenings where members are learning all about spiritual gifts. But even if you don't take a class, just start serving somewhere and you will soon discover where your gifts lie.

I know I focused more in the last few minutes of spiritual gifts versus talents. Let me explain briefly the difference. Both are God-given. Talents are those special abilities that God gave you at birth. Through the years you develop them. Spiritual gifts are special dispensations from God which He bestows on people when they make the decision to become of follower of Christ. Christians and non-Christians have talents (given by God). Only believers have spiritual gifts.

How do I serve the ministry of my church? First of all, by discovering my gifts and talents. Second, by being equipped to serve by my pastors. Are you interested in reading my job description? God Himself wrote it. Now certainly, my roles are multi-faceted. But here is my biblical job description."He is the one who gave these gifts to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God's people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ" (Ephesians 4:11-12, NLT, emphasis mine).

I know in our day and age we make a big deal about job descriptions. How many of you have job descriptions? These documents list all the different areas of responsibility. Then on many, if not most, there is that one last item listed that seems to be common no matter where you work. Do you know what I'm talking about? It says,"Perform other duties as assigned." That one statement clarifies that you can never say,"That's not my job."

But let's go back to this verse because understanding, accepting and applying it represents one of the significant keys if we are to become a great church. God says the number one function of a pastor is not to preach sermons. The number one function is not to visit the sick and the elderly. The number one function is not to win souls for the kingdom. God says the primary function of a pastor is to equip God's people to do God's work in order to build up God's church.

I can tell you now that there are thousands upon thousands of churches plateaued or declining because they have not bought into this biblical model. Churches are killing their pastors because of placing too high expectations on them, especially in regards to pastoral care. Does that mean that pastoral care is not important? No, it is very important. But as a church grows, this biblical model of equipping people becomes more and more important. Every week I spend a significant number of hours visiting hospitals, attending funerals, counseling people with their problems, making phone calls, and writing letters. But the larger a church becomes, the more important it is for that church to give the pastor freedom and permission to live out the biblical model of training people to do the works of ministry.

It's taking a long time, but I am grateful Chapin Baptist recognizes this biblical teaching and grants me permission to focus on equipping people. Not everyone has bought in. This passage from Ephesians I believe applies to every position a church fills that has the role of a pastor. In fact, when it comes to job descriptions, why not at the top in bold print, say,"Your primary task is to equip people to do the work of ministry in your assigned area of responsibility."

I know I spent a lot of time driving home this point. But go back to the second truth I'm teaching today. To serve the ministry of your church means that you are willing and eager to be coached, equipped, taught, encouraged and prepared to do ministry by those God has called to serve as your pastors. Remember, everyone a minister. God has gifted you. Use those gifts. Take advantage of every training opportunity so that you can become a better servant of those gifts.

How can I serve the ministry of my church? By discovering my gifts and talents and by being equipped to serve by my pastors. Third, I serve the ministry of my church by developing a servant's heart. This is huge. I believe most Christians are guilty of having a consumer mentality when it comes to church. Most approach church with the idea,"How can the church meet my needs? What can the church do for me?" It's that"me" mentality. These are the ones who say,"I just don't feel like the church is meeting my needs."

Herein lays the problem. The church is not about you. It is about the living God. It is about developing the servant's heart, one like Jesus had. There are many avenues where any believer can plug into to growth opportunities regardless of where you are on your spiritual journey. Here's another thought. Have you ever considered the fact that your primary spiritual feeding shouldn't come from the church? It should come from your times alone with God every day.

We're talking about heart issues. The key is to develop a servant's heart. When you learn how to serve others with whatever gift God has given you, and you do it with a servant's heart, it is simply amazing how, all of a sudden, your own spiritual needs are being met. The Bible says,"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who…made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant…(Philippians 2:3-5, 7).

Let me tell you a true story of someone who developed a servant's heart out of some very tragic circumstances. One July day the chief of police in Beattyville, Kentucky, told Rosemary Smith and her husband, Luther, that two of their sons—Jeremiah, 15, and Drew, 18—were dead. The brothers were returning from a concert in Indianapolis, Indiana, when they crashed their vehicle.

Darkness like nothing she had ever known settled over Rosemary. Yet, she found solace in her faith. While following the hearses to the burial site, she heard church bells toll 33 times."As I sat there and counted," said Rosemary,"it hit me that when Jesus died, He was 33, which also was the combined ages of my sons."

Not long after her loss, Rosemary began a ministry called Fellow Travelers, a ministry to other grieving parents who have lost a child."I feel this is my mission on Earth," Rosemary said of the ministry."I now have a higher purpose than what I was doing, and the death of my sons took me there."

Every day, she reads the newspapers and searches the Internet for child obituaries. She either calls the families or sends them special packets consisting of books on loss, a music CD, a three-ring notebooks of inspirational messages, and more. She gets about 50 e-mails a day from people requesting one of her packets. More than 5,000 packets—paid for by Rosemary and her husband—have been sent all over the world.

Now listen to these final words. She says,"We are here to help other people. It gives me great joy thinking God is using me to help others." That's what it is all about. That is a servant's heart.

Chapin Baptist Church will become a great church when our members develop the same kind of servant's heart. God wants to use your life experiences to help and serve others. He wants to use your experiences, your gifts and passions to help bring others into the kingdom. Whatever gift God has given you, use it to serve others.