AGGRAVATING WEDNESDAY....

I've just had two major things happen - well, they're major to me, lol! and I figured, why not share them with you? :)

1) My 14 yr old washing machine died in the middle of a load. A load which included most of our towels, and is now sitting there half full of water. Anything like this ever happen to you? The repairman can't come till 10 a.m. tomorrow, and as it sounds like the motor's seized, we'll likely have to buy a new one. Just when we're moving and have all THOSE expenses to consider. (Like paying $300.00 for our pets to be vaccinated and documented just so we can cross the Saskatchewan border into Manitoba - give me a break!) So, ARGH!! It's ruined my stream-lined writing day, not to mention if we have to buy a NEW washer, it won't get here till next Tuesday. (see Laurie in the town's seedy laundrymat - we only have one, and I'm afraid we'd pick up iggly-wiggleys, and goodness knows what else!)

2) I just called our Worship Pastor (who's the only guy around - our new Senior Pastor doesn't start till Sept.1) to rant about our church having to cancel the final week of Vacation Bible School - we only run three weeks, and they had to plead from the pulpit this past Sunday for more volunteers just to get through next week. (I'm one of the volunteers) We only need 14 people to run a week, we've got kids on a waiting list, and only four people volunteered for the third week. It seems most women like dealing with the preschoolers, and not the grades 4-6 kids.

I'm absolutely appalled that a church with over 500 people can't come up with 14 for a week of volunteering. And I know the problem isn't just with my church - it's a universal problem to get volunteers out of the pews and off their butts in just about ANY church. I "volunteered" to speak on the platform about how the congregation needs to be held accountable for this unbelievable lack of desire to minister to children - and they're not just "church" kids, which is the whole point of having a Vacation Bible School. (He just laughed, and I know he won't let me anywhere near the platform! But he did promise to address it)

How does a church solve this problem? How can a church get people motivated to actually *serve* in their churches??? Back in Ontario, we belonged (over the years) to two churches who had to BUS kids in from the country, and run shuttles from meeting points like shopping malls to the church. People signed up in March to be volunteers, and we had an average of 180 kids per WEEK!!

I don't think this is just because Saskatchewan is an under-populated province. This is a 35,000 person city, and also draws from the rural areas. I think it's the old "someone else will do it", syndrome.

If you're reading this, and you haven't volunteered to do something at your church for their Vacation Bible School, please reconsider your time commitments and get out there to help your leaders. VBS reaches children in a different way than just going to Sunday School, and it's easier to get their friends to sign up with them. VBS can have a direct impact on a child's spiritual journey. It's a crucial program in any church.

Okay, enough ranting. If you're not serving in some capacity in your church already, please check your Biblical concordances and look up "servanthood" and "ministry". Maybe it's time to get out of the pew and into the trenches. Just think about it, and after that, like Nike says, Just Do It!!!