A few years ago, a friend and brother in Christ, has been teaching me how to play guitar. This is something I’ve wanted to learn for 25 years. Others have tried to teach me and I’ve tried to learn on my own, but I’ve never been successful. I’d often lament about how I could never get the hang of it until he said, “I’ll get you playing in no time.” I was skeptical at first. How could he succeed when others have failed. But I really wanted to learn and he is an amazing musician so I thought lets try one more time.

The brother helped me pick out a guitar that was comfortable and sounded good. He taught me how to put new strings on it and keep it clean. He showed my a couple of chords to strum. He charted out a song I want to learn to play that will help me as well (it’s Let Her Cry by Hootie and the Blowfish by the way). To my happy surprise and three numb fingers on my left hand, I am playing the guitar! He also told me he has another chart that will help me learn and I could play the rhythm to some old mountain tunes while he played the lead parts.

Wait a minute….

I don’t get the LEAD part? I have to play the RHYTHM? I get to be the guy that just stands there and strums while the lead guitar stands out front and gets noticed?

Most people might become bitter and angry about playing rhythm. Not me. I’m just glad I get to play!

The local congregation of Christians can be a lot like this. Not everyone is the lead, some people are the rhythm. Notice what Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:11, 12 about the roles in the church, “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints, for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.” In the first century church there were different roles. Not everyone was an apostle. Not everyone could teach. Each member that makes up the body of Christ is valuable in whatever they are able to do.

I once knew a man, he’s long since passed on now, that threatened to leave the church if he couldn’t continue to teach the Wednesday night adult Bible class. The teaching quarter was over, it was time for a new teacher and he really wasn’t a good teacher to begin with. People stopped coming because of his teaching style. Some nights, we never opened the Bible. Yet here was a man, full of Bible knowledge and a great student making comments in a class setting, but not suited to be the lead. He refused to be the rhythm and threatened to leave.

On the other hand, I know many wonderful Christians that contribute as the rhythm of a congregation. These are people that may not be able to preach but they encourage the preacher. They may not be able to teach a class, but have the questions from the current lesson answered and prepared to contribute in class with their comments. They may not be comfortable leading a public prayer but pray in private for the sick.

Paul once asked a question about the church, “An if they were all one member, where would the body be?” (1 Corinthians 12:19). The church is the body of Christ. Jesus is the head and we are the members of the body. Which member of your physical body is more important, the eyes or the hands? Would you rather to be able to smell or able to walk? Paul states that when all the parts of you body work together, the body is capable of doing anything.

The same is true with the church. When the rhythm plays with the lead, what fantastic spiritual music we make!

By: Justin Odom