Meet The Deacons: Brandon

This week, we're meeting another deacon, Brandon.

Redeemer: How long have you been part of Redeemer, and how long have you been serving as a deacon?

Brandon: I started coming to Redeemer in I think July of 2010, so that’s a little more than six years. I became a member in 20… 13(?) and a deacon in 2014.

R: What was your understanding of the office before you starting serving in the capacity you are? Has that changed over time? If so, how?

B: Deacons serve the church by meeting practical needs. That can happen in a number of ways depending on the needs of the local church body in which the deacons serve. I think when I started, I kinda felt like there was a “right” way to do this, or that at least there should be. I’ve since learned there’s a lot of freedom and space here, so while being “right” is important, there’s a bunch of ways to get there.

R: What do you like about being a deacon? Is there anything you find particularly rewarding or challenging?

B: I really like helping people find their “thing” and encouraging people to apply their passions and skills to help build up the body. It’s really rewarding to see people serve and actually like it.

I hate scheduling, and I am terrible at it (everyone who knows me right now is either laughing or nodding along). I don’t have to do it very often, but when I do, I put it off as long as I can.  So that’s challenging. Yeah. I hate scheduling, and I’m really grateful for people who like and do it well.

R: What’s the most common question you are asked about being a deacon, and how do you respond?

B: There’s sort of two. One of them is ”So what does that mean?”, and I usually say something like “I help care for the practical needs of Redeemer. Kinda whatever comes up”.

And the second one, which often comes up in the same conversation, is “What’s the difference, then, between being a deacon and just serving faithfully?”

As deacons and deaconesses at Redeemer, our intention is to get the thing done and build up the church, so there is a fair amount of overlap. But, perhaps uniquely, we want to create an environment where as many people can help as possible, so we always (or, we should) have our heads up, looking to get others involved. Sometimes, that’s just taking the person that says “I want to help; tell me what to do” and invite them into any old thing. And others, we ask people to help, figure out what they like doing, and put them in a spot where they can apply their passions and skills, where they hopefully have fun doing it.

So there’s definitely times where we’ve got our heads down late at night, grinding away on some awful project that just has to get done. But, whenever possible, we’re trying to involve others. It makes the garbage more fun to deal with, anyway.