I have been at my church in Cleveland Ohio for a little over 5 years. We have been through growth, pain, big decisions, and much more as a community. As I deal with the day to day grind of pastoral ministry, I have begun to see how the body and staff of a church functions, and there are just a few people that I want to mention and give some credit to.

Disclaimer - for all of you folks who are not mentioned, please know that I value every part of the staff both at our church and at other churches. This is not an attempt to snub leadership, rather an attempt to show how there are so many pieces that go into making leadership affective.

The Receptionist.
If you ever call our church, you are likely to hear something to this affect, "Good morning, Cuyahoga Valley Church, this is Lorrie; how may I help you?" A variation of those words come through many phone lines of many churches all over the world, and they make a world of difference. People who call our church feel warmth, they feel welcome, they don't feel like a nuisance. We live in a world where good customer service is of immense value to people, and even in ministry, good customer service is vital. I am thankful to Lorrie and all of the other receptionists out there who make so many feel the love of Jesus through the phones and at the front desks. This first impression allows ministry to happen because people feel welcome and come back, or come for the first time to hear about Christ.

The Building Crew
Churches can be quite the train wreck. I mean, think about it - you have people coming through from all walks of life, with different standards, kids missing the potty, coffee spilling all over the place, snow filling the parking lot, filters to be changed, clogs to be released, fire alarms to be tested, walls to be painted from 100's of tables and chairs ramming into them, cookie crumbs, left over bulletins, and whatever else might happen in the whirlwind that is church on Sunday and throughout the week. Our team here at CVC does an incredible job, and most of us don't even notice it. If things were dirty and not kept, we would notice it, but we don't cuz they're not. Will, Jim, Andrea, Mark, and Mike are the folks that keep things running at our church. Sure, it drives me nuts when I have to pee really bad and Jim won't let me into the bathroom because he just mopped, but I mean - the bathroom is always clean - you can't win em all. Again, its a matter of doing things with a goal in mind. People need to meet Jesus, and if they don't feel comfortable for themselves and their children, they are going to walk right out the back door. Our church is rarely - if ever - not clean. People like that!

In addition to these responsibilities, they also do all of the setup and organization. Greta takes care of all of the scheduling and organizing of the building, so that people are not running around here getting in fist fights over which room they are going to meet in. You all don't see it, but at most churches, people want to use something in that church. They need a room, a party, a shower for a new mom, a funeral, a funeral luncheon, a wedding, they need chairs, tables, coffee, lights, unlocked doors, and they usually want it now! Thanks to our building team for making this place run!

The Finance Team
There are roughly 2000 people in and out of our church every week. With them comes a ton of things - tithes and offerings, attendance, benevolence requests, event sales, fund raiser monies, book sales, in kind donations, and plenty of other things. I have complete confidence that our church is completely above board and God-honoring in all of our transactions and finances. That is a good place to be. In addition to the tasks, our finance team knows a lot about who gives what, who doesn't give, tax code, who was here, who was not here, and everything in between. I am glad that I don't have that kind of information because my mouth is too big. The ladies that work on that team, Darlene and Jackie at our church, not only keep us financially above board and in line, but also have a incredible task of keeping everything confidential - and I am thankful for their character and servant heart. There are a lot of churches out there, that if they were audited, would be in BIG, BIG trouble. I know that we would not be. This confidence allows people to give of their time, money, and goods freely. Knowing that everything is done in a way that honors God and keeps everyone safe. Thanks ladies!

The Go To Person
If there is something in our church that nobody knows about - we all know to ask Verna. Rick, one of our youth pastors, knows that at his church back home in Ripley NY, his mom is the go to person. There are all these little things that often fall through the cracks at church and other business. Who is going to get all the stuff we need for an event? Who is going to make sure that everything for Sunday morning children's ministry gets into the correct room? Plates, cups, table clothes, DVD's, VCR's, coffee, food, snacks, craft materials, curriculum, decorations, flowers, volunteers,  - these are just a few things that fall onto Verna's plate. If there is one person at our church that I always want on my team - its Verna. And I know that all of you out there can think of who that person is at your church. Its that person that thinks of all of the things that us mere mortals forget about, and at the last minute you say, "oh no, I forgot the...." And like magic, they pull it out of their hat because THEY DID remember that - and whatever you are doing is a success. We are lucky to have these people working and serving in our churches and ministries. Verna not only does all of this, but she saves the church thousands of dollars by being a good steward of these responsibilities as well.

So, if you go to a small church or a big church, regardless of the denomination - take a step back today and think about all that needs to go into pastors being able to do what they do. There is a lot of behind the scenes work that allows a church to function and ultimately give people safe, secure, clean, and comfortable access to good teaching and loving community!