Fair Booth Reflections

Thanks Nick for guest blogging!
The Crow Wing County Fair is over and Park church was there at its food booth once again. I found myself feeling very proud to be with a church that can pull off such a huge undertaking. We get all levels of participation , including some helpers from Light of the Lakes United Methodist Church and others who just like to come and work with their friends and every bit helps. Some people have served faithfully in the same jobs for years: pantry worker, kitchen worker, shift honcho, waitress, phone caller etc. I think some families have had three generations of church fair booth working.
Personally I got to put in a few hours at the grill, one shift as a griller's assistant, a couple of shifts as dishwasher and even covered the cashier spot for a few minutes with Charles on a lunch break. I tried to check in and visit with each shift and we have four shifts a day starting at 7 am, finishing up between 10 and 11 pm. My first year at the fair I worked as one of the waiters but found out that it was not my favorite spot!

Several times during the week I was asked if I had my sermon done yet and would it be about the fair booth? They said there should be plenty of lessons in here somewhere. That's true. In an earlier blog I thought about how it was a "community maker"and not just a money-maker and used the body of Christ image from I Corthinians 12; many differing parts and one body. I saw that again as I realized how every job at the food booth was absolutely essential. Where would we be without the dishwashers! How could we operate without the person who laundered the aprons every night at her home? What about the food prepared back in the church kitchen? When I was grilling I was helpless with out the helper and the steam table worker. If no one took the orders what would happen? Who took care of the shopping list and ran the errands and washed the floors? What if we had no customers! You get the idea.

Another lesson would be comments that I heard from Nick and Sara who were taking orders as waiter/waitress. They spoke of how most people were understanding and courteous as they came to the food booth. We are , after all, volunteers in a job that happens only once a year. But there were a few exceptions - the people who snapped their fingers at you 'like you were a dog" or who thought they should be treated as if all other customers had to be ignored but them ,and so on. We talked about how when they are in a restaurant they will have a new appreciation for the wait staff. But there is a larger analogy to work with here. In ministry we will serve all kinds of people. Most will be appreciative and understanding and willing to join in the Spirit of the venture and that even with our best training and efforts we will still make some mistakes. And there will also be a a few exceptions; those who will always be critical or demanding or just plain hard to satisfy. But we are still here to offer the ministry of Christ. Grace seems to be the featured item on the menu. We serve it with prayer and patience, forgiveness and faith; and every now and then we take off the aprons and we sit down at the booth and enjoy a good helping just for ourselves. We need it!
This morning (Fair Booth Recovery Sunday on our local liturgical calender) we celebrated the sacrament of Holy Communion and we remembered all that God has done to feed us and serve us. We are first of all, those who receive. God, in Jesus Christ, has come to serve us. We are hungry. We come to the table. I suppose most of the time I come with my best gratitude and patience and open-ness. Some times I am probably like the self centered customer who wants it fast and wants it now. I have probably snapped my fingers at God a few times. Thank God I still get served. Grace.
Rambling on....