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On a business trip, my dad and my wife and I found time to tour the Behalt Cyclorama at the Amish & Mennonite Heritage Center in Berlin, Ohio this week. I was struck by something the guide said during a description of an Amish barn raising.

An “English” onlooker at a real barn raising told the tour guide once that she was fascinated by the fact that she could not find for the life of her who was “the boss” at the event. It appeared that everyone just pitched in and did his part. This of course is the thing about an Amish barn raising that is so appealing and amazing. Hundreds of men work together to pull off a huge project in only a few hours, all with only a minimum of “bossmanship.”

It occurred to me that this wonderful example of working together could apply to the Church. And here is a strange contrast. Many of the “plain” Anabaptist groups which in some ways demonstrate Christian brotherhood to an extent which should embarrass all other Christians have difficulty applying the brotherhood principle in church life. Many Anabaptist churches consider it impossible to function as a church without complex organization of authority. Broader conference-style structures and authoritarian hierarchical systems at the local level are deemed necessary for the church to prosper. What if our church experiences were as much of a wonder to onlookers as our barn raisings? What if it were difficult to tell who was the boss because of how eager each member was to shoulder his share of the load?

What the onlooker at the barn raising did not realize is that there was, without doubt, a very capable foreman whose organizational and motivational skills were a large part of the project. Certainly we need leaders in the Church who have this kind of authority – the sort of leadership ability that brings out the best in each member without drawing power, attention, or prestige to itself, but that merely assists the body to do what it is supposed to do.

I was absolutely delighted with the March pick for free download of the month at christianaudio.com: Tolstoy: Father Sergius and Other Short Stories (Unabridged). Here are stories included in the recording:

God Sees the Truth but Waits
A Prisoner in the Caucuses
Alyosha The Plot
Father Sergius
What Men Live By
Where God Is Love Is

“God Sees the Truth but Waits” is one of my all-time favorite short stories and is one that I read in prison periodically. “Where God Is Love Is” is a great classic.