The Body of Christ

We Are the Body of Christ-Together

One of my favorite metaphors for the church is that we are the body of Christ. Paul reminds us in Romans 12:4-5:

For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

For years, I’ve pictured this in terms of my local church—many members, each with unique gifts, working together to serve God, the church, and the community. My goal has always been to help people recognize those gifts and find ways to use them.

But lately, I’ve begun to see this metaphor through a broader lens. Instead of just one congregation, I see our entire Upper Midwest Conference—193 churches—each as a vital part of the body of Christ. (Fun fact: The human body has 206 bones—maybe we should set a goal of 13 more churches to complete the analogy!)

Celebrating Our Collective Gifts

Each congregation has its own strengths. Some are gifted in missions, others in

hospitality, others in worship. No single church has to be amazing at everything—but together, we form a whole. We can learn from one another, encourage one another, and strengthen the ministry of every local church when we serve as one body.

One of our priorities as a conference is to Encourage Every Church. That means reminding every church that they have more than enough to do God’s work—if we lean on the Holy Spirit and one another. Every church has something to offer, and our conference is not complete without them.

And the best way to build this encouragement? Sharing our stories. Here are just a few that have inspired me:

• A youth group held a fundraiser—not for themselves, but to help a church plant find a place to worship.

  
  

• A church that hadn’t had Sunday School since COVID is now seeing kids gather again to learn about Jesus.

  
  

• When a community’s after-school program was set to close, a church stepped in to take it over—keeping a vital service alive for local children.

  
  

• And this one warmed my heart: A kindergartener called for a prayer circle when their teacher was absent due to medical tests following cancer treatment.

Stories like these remind me that God is at work in our churches, in our communities, and in the next generation. I love seeing churches serving young people—and young people serving the church.

We truly have everything we need to continue God’s work. So let’s keep sharing,

encouraging, and lifting each other up. Because we are one body, the body of Christ. And together, we will make disciples of Jesus Christ and spread scriptural holiness across the globe.