The Member Musings section of our blog is written by church members in the hope of encouraging you to see all of life through the lens of the gospel. Today we hear from Jee St. John, our church administrator who has been with us at Lighthouse from the very first Sunday. She shares with us her own growth in learning to love a growing church.
When Pastor Kim asked me to pray about coming on the church plant over 10 years ago, I was certain, 100% certain that I was going to tell him I would pray about it and then say “Nope.” But God is faithful even when we are foolish. Looking back, I’m so thankful that I came along on this church plant almost 11 years ago.
I remember the first Sunday at Lighthouse as if it was yesterday. I started off serving with Connections and Youth Ministries. And after about three Sundays, I knew everyone’s name. I knew everyone who attended our church.
Fast forward 10 years and I’m sorry to say that I don’t even know all of our members. No matter how hard I try to meet new (to me) faces on Sundays, I fail to know every face and name that walks through our doors.
Maybe some of you can empathize with me. In the lovely, bustling crowd of after service fellowship on Sundays, it’s hard to connect with everyone. To be honest, if you want a meaningful catch-up, it’s hard to connect with more than two people. Thankfully, it’s not about knowing everyone, but loving people well.
I admit that there are some Sundays when I just want to hide away in the quiet of the church office and interact with my silent computer as I get some work done. And as much as I love people and being around them, the many new faces chatting away in the Fellowship Hall can get overwhelming.
But God in His goodness and perfect timing has used the current sermon series and our small group series to challenge me in this area and has given me the push I need to stop being selfish and to really make the effort to get to know different folks at Lighthouse. And I’ve definitely grown because of it.
And ironically the growing pains (and the blessings) of a rapidly growing church have deepened my love for our church family and have caused me to want to love people better by stepping outside my comfort zone and meeting someone new.
Jee St. John serves as Lighthouse’s church administrator, a job made much easier by the fellowship she has with the church family and the opportunity to serve alongside faithful brothers and sisters in Christ. In addition to her administrative responsibilities, Jee is actively involved in small groups and women’s ministry. Her interests include cooking, eating, reading, hiking, running, snowboarding, coffee, photography, and enjoying the dreamy southern company of her husband, Tim.
