Two of the most dreaded words in a seminary class syllabus are “group project.” Unfortunately for my classmates and I, our seminary was as fond of group projects as it was of Matrix-based theology metaphors. We inevitably encountered them every semester.
The problem most students have with group projects is that they rarely go according to plan. The hurdles are numerous. The group can’t agree on the direction of the project, and coordinating everyone’s schedules is difficult. Usually, the bulk of the work ends up falling to one or two people. Bonus points if a group member goes rogue during the presentation.
Despite students’ constant moaning and groaning about group projects, professors continue to assign them. “Trust us,” they say. “This is good experience for when you’re working in a church.”
I wish I could say they were wrong, but seven months into my first church job, I can confirm that the church is a series of group projects. Fortunately, these group projects are as meaningful as they are stressful.
A few months ago our church began a new “group project”—resettling a Syrian refugee family in our community in partnership with World Relief Atlanta. This was the first major group effort I had been responsible for coordinating, and I was in way over my head. I saw the never-ending to-do list and wondered how it would ever get done. After all, I’m just one person.
As God would have it, I was going to be out of town for the family’s first two weeks in Gainesville. I felt like I was letting my volunteers down by abandoning them during such a critical time for the family. This time, I was the member of the group project not carrying her weight.
Two days before the family arrived from Syria, I sat in my office with two of my volunteers going over the plan for the week. Guilt gnawing at my stomach, I apologized to the women once again for being unavailable.
“Rachel, we’ve got this,” Janice said. “We’ll take care of them. Now stop worrying so you can be fully present where you’re going.”
Janice was right. I just needed to trust them and learn to let go of control. I wasn’t abandoning them. God was taking me out of the way so they could shower their love and care on this new family.
The difference between group projects in school and projects in the church is that church members want to serve. They get to choose where they want to invest their time and gifts. Letting go of the mentality I had as a student has been both difficult and refreshing. I’m learning to let go of control and start with the questions, “Who cares about this? To whom can I give this opportunity? Who is looking for a place to serve?”
Watching our church come together to support and befriend our refugee family has been one of the most incredible experiences of my time in ministry so far. Every time a need arises, from transportation to doctor visits to English lessons to a day of fun at the park, someone steps up and says, “Hey, don’t worry. We’ve got this.”
Through all of this I’ve learned that our job as ministers is to not only teach our congregations about the ways God calls us into the world but to empower them to live out their holy callings in their community. Letting go and trusting them with this holy work is difficult and requires humility. But when we finally do let go, we get to see just how big and wild God’s love is when all of God’s people live out their callings together.