We’re All Members of a Single Body

by Tammy Karasek @TickledPinkTam

Have you ever worked on a project with a team and slowly took charge of the project?

Or do you feel overwhelmed and unneeded when someone is a stronger personality and they take over? To be honest, I have felt both sides of this issue. 

And I was wrong.  

Let me explain. 

            And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Colossians 3:15 NASB

As the scripture above states, as believers, we are called to be one body. That means we need to work in unison together. I didn’t always do that. Sometimes I was run over by a stronger personality who took charge. Other times, I was that stronger person. Definitely not a fact I’m proud of. We need to not only work together but also have peace in our hearts and be thankful for the opportunity.

With most projects, someone does need to be in charge. After all, if the team is all Queen bees with no worker bees, how will anything get done? If we are not the one in charge for a specific project, then we need to be able to work together and be at peace about it. Even though the person in charge may not be willing to let others assist them, we need to do our best to serve alongside of them. Without grumbling or criticizing their work.

When we think about all the various parts of the human body, each has a unique responsibility to work in conjunction with the other parts. When all parts are working together, the body works smoothly. When there is an issue with a body part, or it is missing, it becomes more difficult to accomplish certain tasks. Often, those other parts of the body have to work harder or compensate for the nonworking body. 

Such is the same in the body of Christ. We can’t all sing in the choir, who will rock the babies? We can’t all teach, who will be the students? We can’t all be missionaries in foreign lands, who will minister to the people around us here in our communities? 

The point is, we need to stop feeling like we have nothing to offer or the opposite of that – we can do it all by ourselves. Every part of the body of Christ is needed for specific purposes. Whether we’re called to leadership or be that worker bee – we need to serve with a peaceful and thankful heart. 

Does this apply to writing? It sure does. As writers, we’re aware that we spend much of our writing journey alone tapping away on our keyboards. But the path to publication is far from staying hidden behind that screen. We need and must be out in the community of writers. To do so is like being part of a bigger team. Being part of this team can take work. Some of us are extroverts (raising both hands over here!) and some are not. Extroverts like me can sometimes take over with our enthusiasm leaving the introverts where they like to be—behind the scenes, or in their rooms!

Those of us who are quick to lead a conversation at a writers’ conference need to remember and notice those more reserved around us. We need to gently, without embarrassment, pull the reserved ones into the conversation. This is being part of the team and realizing that this circle didn’t gather just for you, but for each other. 

We are in full swing for the 2019 Conference year. There’ll be many opportunities for us to be on this writing team at these events. Let’s try to remember while we’re at the conference to meet other writers and possibly pitch our book proposal, all the folks around us are there to do the same. Reach out and encourage those around you. Cheer for one another. Stop and pray in a hallway where you see someone who has just received a rejection regarding their work—or are nervous to go in to pitch that work.

We’re in this together, no matter whose name is on the cover of the book. We, as Christian writers, do need and want to see God’s name glorified through our words. Let’s strive to be a good, working body part of the writing team or community.

What about you? Will you choose to accept that you are important to the body? And will you have a thankful heart for the opportunity to serve together on this writing journey? 

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We're all members of a single body - @TickledPinkTam on @EdieMelson (Click to Tweet)

You’ll find Tammy seeing humor and causing laughter in every aspect of life. Her past, filled with bullying and criticism from family, is the driving force of her passion to always encourage others and give them The Reason to smile. She’s been married to her college sweetheart, Larry, for 37 years, a mom to their grown daughter, Kristen and wrapped around the paw of a little dog named Hattie. Born and raised in Ohio, her family now resides in South Carolina. She is the President of Word Weavers Upstate SC, member of ACFW and member of My Book Therapy/Novel Academy. She’s the Blog Coordinator/Editor for Florida Christian Writers Conference. She was a contributor in the 2018 Divine Moments Compilation Book—Cool-inary Moments. She’s been a contributor to several other blogs.

Connect with Tammy on her blog, http://www.tammykarasek.com, through Twitter and Facebook.