For Wilshire Baptist Church
In case you didn’t know, I’ve been scheduling Wilshire’s deacons the past few years. That means I line up who serves the Lord’s Supper on each first Sunday of the month. In that process I’m constantly reminded how much this is a family meal – where the entire family is worthy not just to partake but to serve.
I grew up in a Baptist church and on communion Sundays the front pew was reserved for the deacons, and that means the front pew was lined shoulder to shoulder with men. They were all ages and all sizes, but they all were men. Their wives, daughters, sisters and mothers-in-law sat quietly behind them, waiting to be served. Interesting how we’d go home to Sunday lunch and the tables would be turned.
The same was true at Wilshire in that day, and my mention of it is not an indictment of that history. It was a different time and there were different sensibilities. Every new generation has the opportunity to imprint our traditions and customs with their fresh perspective, and that has been true at Wilshire and the church I grew up in. Wilshire ordained women for the first time in 1991, and my home church did the same a year later. My mother and my wife were among the first women ordained at the two churches. Good for them, and good for all of us.
Among our active deacons at Wilshire this year we have four sets of spouses, a mother and son, a father and daughter, a mother-in-law and son-in-law, and two sisters. We also have 11 “half couples,” meaning active deacons whose spouses are also ordained but not currently serving unless asked to fill in. And they do serve with their active spouse once a quarter with preschoolers in Extended Teaching Care.
I don’t choose who becomes a deacon, but you do, Wilshire, and you do a marvelous job of bringing forward servant leaders of high character and strong commitment. And you’ve seen fit to make our deacon body reflect the strong family ties that have been prevalent throughout the history of our church. I don’t think this has happened by design; I think it’s just the natural result of who we are as a community.
Like I said, I don’t choose the deacons; I’m just the lucky one who gets to call the family together every first Sunday.