an unusual message

    Last Saturday morning, I was able to attend the memorial service of the father/father-in-law of our dear friends John and Jewels, via my sweet friend Elizabeth B. chauffeuring me. (Thanks Elizabeth!!). I had known the father/father-in-law for y-e-a-r-s. He and his wife had been active in camp back when my family first started attending. And then they had been coming to our church for the last couple of years, via their children. But the main reason I wanted to attend, was to give smiling support to my friends.
    Originally both Brian and I were going to go, but then for the first time in over two years, his work scheduled a 'mandatory Saturday'. Figures. I'm glad I went anyways.
    One of the speakers was Dr. Rich McCarrell. He spoke on Romans chapter 16, verses 3 through 16. Like he said, it is not the usual type of message you hear at funerals or memorial services. But I liked it! And I was encouraged by it.
    In those verses, the apostle Paul is sending personal greetings to various people in the local body of believers in Rome. By personal greetings, I mean that he mentions different people by name. None of the names he mentions, are names that we automatically associate with the early church in Rome, or anywhere for that matter. We are all familiar with the name Paul, or Timothy, or Matthew, or Mark, or Titus, as well as others. But some of the names he is sending greetings to here are, Priscilla, Aquila, Junia and Tryphosa. As well as others.
    Dr. McCarrell said that all of these people, were people whom were the 'behind the scenes' type of people in the local churches. They were the ones whom did what needed to be done, so that the more well known names could do the teaching. Paul held all of them in high esteem because they were using their own God given talents for the benefit of the spreading of the gospel, as well as the encouraging and building up of the saints.
    Dr. McCarrell said that Paul knew just how important their 'behind the scenes' efforts were in the overall scheme of things. He said that it was likely the now deceased would have been one of the people Paul would have been sending greetings to.
    He wanted to use that passage so that he could encourage all of us still here, to continue on in what we do, whether we be 'out front', or one of the just as vital but 'behind the scenes' type of people.
    I wanted to share this with all of you to hopefully spread the encouragement. Sometimes being a 'behind the scenes' type of worker/person can seem discouraging and totally unappreciated. We must remember who it is we are called to serve. While we are told to serve one another, it is God himself that we are actually to be serving. What ever 'behind the scenes' task that we are doing, mentally know that it is God we are doing it for.
    May you too be encouraged by Paul's message in Romans 16: 3 - 16.