God’s Holy Word

One Microphone, One Thousand Parishioners
One Microphone, One Thousand Parishioners

We have teachable moments all the time. Most of them pass by too quickly to be noticed.

A decade ago, I volunteered to become a Church Lector, figuring my new role as a Professional Speaker would add value to the Church.

A year or so into it, we had a formal training class and one of the volunteers got up and made a statement that I’ll never forget.

“You may think you are simply doing a reading, but you are actually proclaiming God’s Holy Word. This may be the only scripture much of our congregation gets all week.”

Rather than judge others, I’ve promised God to do the best with the 60 – 90 seconds He gives me once or twice a month.

At 8:45AM Mass this morning, I hope it’s God’s voice they hear and not mine.

jeff noel Lector

jeff noel Lector.

Doing the first reading this morning at Mass. May God’s Holy Spirit fill me with the wisdom to read in such a way, that the parishioners will feel like God is speaking to them and not me.

Blessed beyond measure we are. Aren’t we?

CLOW – Children’s Liturgy

Sundays during the school year, our Church offers Children’s Liturgy of the Word for Kindergarten through fifth grade. Two or three adult leaders form a team and lead a particular week each month.

The volunteer leaders perform various functions to help bring Mass down to an Elementary level and to engage the children differently (better) than the adult Mass.

My wife, a good friend, and I, lead 50-100 children through Children’s Liturgy every the fourth Sunday.

This past Sunday, for a variety of reasons, my wife Cheryl led it solo. Sixty-five children in all. She said they were incredibly well behaved. If you’ve never done this, you’d be amazed at how challenging it is.

We began volunteering in this ministry several years ago after a parishioner made a plea for more volunteers or the program would end.

Funny how life puts things in your path. This experience has me delivering homilies (sermons). Who would have ever thought? Me? You’ve got to be kidding.

Volunteering Is A Lifestyle

Didn’t consciously think about this until our son was born in 2000.

In studying human nature, I concluded there were several choices:

  1. Volunteering for things that take you away from your Family
  2. Volunteering for things that do not take you away from your Family
  3. Volunteering for a little of both
  4. Not volunteering

This morning, I’m a Lector at our Church. Once or twice a month I have the privilege to read from the Old Testament or the New Testament.

The (two) Lectors act as God’s voice, and read critical pieces of scripture to the congregation.

Our son sees this every time I volunteer. Visible is good. Carpe diem, jeff noel 🙂