Teamwork

A sea captain and his chief engineer were arguing over who was most important to the ship. To prove their point to each other, they decided to swap places. The chief engineer ascended to the bridge, and the captain went to the engine room.

Several hours later, the captain suddenly appeared on deck covered with oil and dirt. “Chief!” he yelled, waving aloft a monkey wrench. “You have to get down there: I can’t make her go!” “Of course you can’t,” replied the chief. “She’s aground!”

On a team we don’t excel each other; we depend on each other.

Session 1:

Eccl. 4:9-12: Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up. Again, if two lie together, then they have heat: but how can one be warm alone? And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

As we begin this journey, may we think about these words from Solomon concerning teamwork. Each of us has a job to perform in order to complete the mission. Some of you may be involved in navigation, some in steering, and some may be watching out for hazards ahead. Not one of us is more important than the other. We all have equally important parts to play.

Solomon tells us that two are better than one. “Rugged individualism” is the buzzword of the day. We are bombarded with encouragement to “do it on our own.” But we are rarely aware of the help we get along the way. From the time we are children, our parents/guardians supported us and made sure we had a good start in life. We moved on through life and created a network of friends we could always rely on. And now we are serving our country--as a team. Work together to accomplish the mission.

“A threefold cord is not quickly broken.”

Session 2

1 Corinthians 12:14-18

For the body is not one member, but many. I f the foot shall say, "Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body," is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall say, "Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body," is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.

You have experienced what it means to work together as a team. Let us hone those skills as we complete this training.

I March of 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot by John Hinckley, Jr., and was hospitalized for several weeks. Although Reagan was the nation’s chief executive, his hospitalization had little impact on the nation’s activity. Government continued on.

On the other hand, suppose the garbage collectors in this country went on strike, as they did in Philadelphia. That city was not only in a literal mess, the pile of decaying trash quickly became a health hazard. A three-week nationwide strike would paralyze the country.

Who is more important--the President or a garbage collector?

In the body of Christ, seemingly insignificant ones are urgently needed. As Paul reminds us, “The head cannot say to the feet, ‘I don’t need you!’ On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable.”