For nineteen years, Mama Adunni arrived at the church every Saturday at two o’clock in the afternoon. She came on foot from her room two streets away, carrying a bucket, a bottle of disinfectant and a small radio tuned to a gospel station. She swept the main hall. She scrubbed the toilets. She filled the four big water drums at the back from the borehole tap, washed the communion cups and set them upside down on a white cloth to dry. On Sunday morning she was back at half past six, unlocking the toilets, boiling water for the ushers’ tea and laying out the hymn books in the pews.
Nobody had asked her to do it. She started the year her husband died. The women of the church had cleaned her house for the funeral, cooked for the mourners and washed every plate afterwards, and when it was all over she wanted to give something back. She had sold provisions in the market at Oyingbo for forty years. She did not know how to preach, but she knew how to keep a place clean.
Then, one rainy Saturday in July, she slipped on the wet floor of the ladies’ toilet and broke her wrist. A neighbour took her to the general hospital, and she was admitted for surgery.
The next morning the church discovered what she had been doing. The toilets were locked, and nobody knew where the key was. The drums were empty. The ushers stood around a cold kettle. Halfway through the service, the communion stewards opened the cupboard and found the cups still sitting where they had been left the previous month, unwashed. The pastor had to announce that communion would be postponed.
He told me later that he went to see her in hospital that afternoon, and as he walked down the ward he realised he did not know her surname. “That woman had been carrying our worship on her back for nineteen years,” he said, “and I had never once asked her how she was.”
PunchlineEvery church has a Mama Adunni. Most churches have dozens. This teaching is about them, and about the kind of church that honours them properly.
Helps among the gifts
When Paul lists the ministries God has placed in the church, he includes one that most of us read past:
Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.
Apostles, prophets, teachers, miracles, healings. And then, between gifts of healings and governments, a single word: helps. It is easy to treat it as a footnote. Paul did not.
The Greek word behind helps appears only here in the New Testament. It comes from a verb meaning to take hold of something in order to support it, to lay hold of someone and help carry the weight. Paul uses that verb when he tells the Ephesian elders “that so labouring ye ought to support the weak” (Acts 20:35). Mary uses it in her song when she rejoices that God “hath holpen his servant Israel” (Luke 1:54). The ministry of helps is the ministry of getting underneath a load so that someone else can stand.
The word next to it is interesting too. Governments comes from the word for the pilot or helmsman of a ship, the man who steers. Luke uses that word in Acts 27:11 for “the master” of the ship carrying Paul to Rome. So Paul places the people who take hold of the load and the people who steer the ship in the same list as apostles and healers.
And notice the verb that governs the whole list: “God hath set some in the church.” The person who prepares the hall, keeps the accounts, drives the elderly to service or mends the broken chairs has been placed there by the same God who appointed the apostles. The visible gifts and the hidden ones come from one hand.
Paul begins the verse with identity: “Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.” Every member belongs. Then he lists the gifts, and the order matters for some purposes, since the apostolic ministry of the word is foundational. But it does not create a ladder of worth. A few verses earlier he has written that the members “which seem to be more feeble, are necessary” (1 Corinthians 12:22). Helps may be one of the least noticed gifts in the church. That is exactly the kind Paul says God surrounds with honour.
A practical problem with spiritual weight
The early church in Jerusalem had its first internal crisis over food. Luke tells us that as the number of disciples multiplied, “there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration” (Acts 6:1). The Greek-speaking Jewish believers, many of them from outside Judea, felt that their widows were being overlooked when the church distributed daily food.
It was a practical failure, and it could easily have become a spiritual disaster. Complaints about fairness, running along lines of language and culture, are exactly the kind of thing that splits churches. The apostles took it seriously. They called the whole community together and explained that it was not right for them to abandon the ministry of the word “and serve tables” (Acts 6:2). Then they gave the church a task: “look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business” (Acts 6:3).
Read that requirement again. The men who would oversee the food distribution had to be honest, full of the Holy Ghost and full of wisdom. The apostles did not hand practical work to anyone who happened to be free. They treated it as spiritual service that needed spiritual people. Practical ministry is ministry.
Then Luke records what happened:
And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
Look at the names: Stephen, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, Nicolas. Every one of them is a Greek name. The church appears to have chosen its new servants largely from the very community that had been neglected. Rather than defending themselves, they placed the care of the overlooked into the hands of people who understood them. That is wisdom.
The apostles prayed and laid their hands on them. The same act of recognition used for other ministries was used for men appointed to serve food. And the result was striking: “the word of God increased.” The ministry of tables did not compete with the ministry of the word. It made room for it.
Notice, too, what became of two of these men. Stephen, “full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people” (Acts 6:8), and became the church’s first martyr. Philip “went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them” (Acts 8:5). Serving tables was not a lesser track for people who could not preach. Some of the church’s most powerful witnesses began by making sure widows were fed.
The names at the end of Romans
Paul’s letter to the Romans is perhaps the greatest theological work ever written. It moves from sin to justification, from the Spirit to the purposes of God for Israel and the nations. And then, in its final chapter, it becomes a list of names.
I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea: That ye receive her in the Lord, as becometh saints, and that ye assist her in whatsoever business she hath need of you: for she hath been a succourer of many, and of myself also. Greet Priscilla and Aquila my helpers in Christ Jesus: Who have for my life laid down their own necks: unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles.
Phebe comes first. Paul calls her “a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea,” using the word from which we get deacon. Interpreters differ over whether he means a recognised office or a general description of her service, and sincere believers hold both views. What is not in doubt is the honour Paul gives her. She has been “a succourer of many, and of myself also.” The word suggests a patron or protector, someone who used her resources and standing to support others. Most scholars think she carried this letter to Rome. If so, the most important document in the history of Christian doctrine travelled in the luggage of a woman Paul describes as a helper.
Then Priscilla and Aquila, “my helpers in Christ Jesus,” who had risked their lives for him. A church met in their house (Romans 16:5).
Keep reading and the names keep coming. “Greet Mary, who bestowed much labour on us” (Romans 16:6). “Salute Tryphena and Tryphosa, who labour in the Lord. Salute the beloved Persis, which laboured much in the Lord” (Romans 16:12). And one I love: “Salute Rufus chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine” (Romans 16:13). Somewhere along the way, Rufus’s mother had mothered the apostle Paul. We do not know when. Perhaps she fed him, nursed him, took him in. Paul never forgot it.
At the end of the chapter even the scribe gets a line: “I Tertius, who wrote this epistle, salute you in the Lord” (Romans 16:22). Then Gaius, “mine host,” and Quartus, described simply as “a brother” (Romans 16:23).
Paul’s theology did not float above these people. It was carried by them, housed by them, funded by them, written down by them and delivered by them. The gospel he preached reached Rome because a great many people took hold of the load.
NuggetThe church’s most visible ministries are carried on the shoulders of people whose names are rarely announced. God knows every one of them, and Scripture teaches us to honour them by name.
The women who supported Jesus
The pattern goes back to Jesus Himself. Luke gives us a glimpse behind the scenes of His travelling ministry:
And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him, And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, And Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance.
Jesus went “throughout every city and village, preaching.” The twelve were with Him. And so were “certain women,” some of whom had been healed and delivered, “which ministered unto him of their substance.” They provided for the Son of God out of their own resources. Joanna was the wife of a senior official in Herod’s household; Mary Magdalene had been set free from seven devils. Their gratitude became practical support, and Luke thought it worth recording.
Mark tells us that some of these same women were at the cross, “looking on afar off,” and he adds that they had followed Jesus in Galilee “and ministered unto him” (Mark 15:40-41). Many of the twelve had fled. The helpers stayed.
There is another woman whose practical devotion Jesus defended publicly. In Bethany, a woman broke an alabaster box of costly ointment and poured it on His head. Some of those present were indignant at the waste. Jesus answered:
And Jesus said, Let her alone; why trouble ye her? she hath wrought a good work on me. For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always. She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying. Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her.
“She hath done what she could.” That is one of the finest commendations in Scripture, and it fits a great many hidden servants. They have not done everything. They have done what they could, with what they had, for the Lord. Jesus promised that her act would be remembered wherever the gospel was preached. He does not forget acts of love that others call a waste.
Acknowledge such people
When Paul closed his first letter to the Corinthians, he pointed them to a household that had given itself to practical service:
I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,) That ye submit yourselves unto such, and to every one that helpeth with us , and laboureth. I am glad of the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus: for that which was lacking on your part they have supplied. For they have refreshed my spirit and yours: therefore acknowledge ye them that are such.
The house of Stephanas “addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints.” In older English, addicted meant devoted, given over to something. They had set themselves to serve God’s people. And Paul does three things in response.
First, he asks the church to “submit yourselves unto such, and to every one that helpeth with us, and laboureth.” The people who serve faithfully are to be respected and followed. Their quiet labour gives them a kind of authority in the life of the church.
Second, he names the effect of their help: “they have refreshed my spirit and yours.” Helpers bring refreshment. The apostle himself was strengthened by the arrival of three men who supplied what was lacking.
Third, he gives an instruction: “therefore acknowledge ye them that are such.” Recognise them. Notice them. Say so.
David understood this centuries earlier. When some of his soldiers refused to share the spoil with the men who had stayed behind to guard the baggage, David overruled them: “as his part is that goeth down to the battle, so shall his part be that tarrieth by the stuff: they shall part alike” (1 Samuel 30:24). He made it a statute in Israel. Those who keep the supplies share the victory with those who fight.
And the writer to the Hebrews assures believers that “God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister” (Hebrews 6:10). Even a cup of cold water given in the name of a disciple “shall in no wise lose his reward” (Matthew 10:42). The church may forget. God does not.
Willing workers are not an endless resource
Here is the uncomfortable side of this subject. Many churches depend heavily on a small number of faithful people, and treat them as though they will always be there. The same names appear on every rota. The same women cook for every programme. The same young men set up chairs at six in the morning and stack them at ten at night. Because they never complain, nobody asks whether they are tired.
Paul wrote about a helper who nearly died in service. Epaphroditus had been sent by the Philippian church to bring Paul a gift and care for him in prison. Paul says he “was nigh unto death, not regarding his life, to supply your lack of service toward me” (Philippians 2:30). Paul did not celebrate the near-collapse as a model to imitate. He sent Epaphroditus home “the more carefully” (Philippians 2:28), so the church could see him and rejoice, and he told them, “hold such in reputation” (Philippians 2:29). Honour the helper. And do not use him up.
A church that values the ministry of helps will show it in practical ways.
It will share the load. A ministry that depends on one person is fragile, and it is unkind to that person. Build teams and rotas, and train new people alongside experienced ones.
It will ask, and not only accept. Ask your volunteers how they are. Ask whether the role still fits their season of life. Give them permission to step back without guilt.
It will protect their safety. Mama Adunni’s fall happened on a wet floor with no warning sign and no one else in the building. Proper equipment, sensible procedures and never working alone in risky conditions are basic care.
It will pay fairly where work has become employment. When a role grows into a near full-time job, it is often right for the church to pay for it. “The labourer is worthy of his reward” (1 Timothy 5:18). Relying indefinitely on the unpaid labour of poor widows or unemployed young people, while the church spends freely elsewhere, is not honouring them.
It will safeguard the vulnerable. Helpers in children’s ministry, youth work and care for the elderly should be appropriately vetted and trained, should never be alone with a child behind closed doors, and should know exactly how to report a concern. Willingness to serve is a gift, but it does not replace proper safeguarding.
PunchlineAnd it will never manipulate. Guilt, pressure and spiritual threats are not legitimate ways to recruit or retain workers. Service in the body of Christ should be given freely and gladly.
When the helper feels unseen
There is a quieter danger, and it lives inside the helper rather than in the church’s systems. Hidden service, carried long enough without thanks, can turn sour. A faithful worker begins to keep a mental record: who never helps, who arrives late and leaves early, who stands on the platform while she scrubs the floor. Resentment grows slowly, and it can poison the very service that was once a gift of love.
If you recognise that in yourself, you do not need to be ashamed of it. The church may well have failed you, and your tiredness may be entirely justified. But resentment is a signal worth listening to. Sometimes it means you are carrying too much and need to say so clearly to someone who can change it. Sometimes it means that your service has drifted from its source, and you have begun working for people’s approval instead of for the Lord’s pleasure.
The remedy is to return to why we serve at all. Jesus said of Himself that “even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Before we ever took hold of a load for anyone else, He took hold of ours. Every act of practical help in the church is a small echo of that great service. We serve because we have been served, and served completely, at the cross.
That truth frees you in two directions. It frees you to keep serving gladly when nobody notices, because the One you serve has already noticed you and given Himself for you. And it frees you to stop when you must, because your worth before God was never measured by how many buckets you carried. You are a beloved child first, and a servant second. A servant who knows she is loved can rest without fear and work without bitterness.
Finding your place in the hidden work
If you are not yet serving, consider where you could take hold of a load. Look around your church at what is quietly being carried: the welcome at the door, the cleaning, the sound desk, the accounts, the visits to the sick, the driving, the cooking, the children’s classroom, the WhatsApp messages to absent members. Ask who carries them and whether they need help.
Bring what you have. Dorcas served her church with a needle, and when she died, the widows stood weeping beside Peter, “shewing the coats and garments which Dorcas made” (Acts 9:39). Your skill, whatever it is, can be grace in someone else’s life.
Serve for the Lord’s eyes. “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men” (Colossians 3:23). Hidden service can become bitter if it is secretly waiting for recognition. Do it for Him, and let any thanks from people be a bonus. Your “Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly” (Matthew 6:4).
And if you are already one of the faithful, here is a word for you. Your work is ministry. It is not second-class service for people who could not do anything more spiritual. God set you in the church. The apostles would have laid hands on you. Paul would have written your name in his letter. And Jesus would have said of you, “She hath done what she could.” Rest in that, and let others share the load.
When the pastor reached Mama Adunni’s bed, her arm was in plaster and she was trying to sit up. Before he could speak, she asked, “Pastor, who filled the drums?”
He had to tell her that nobody had.
The following Sunday he stood before the congregation and told them what had happened. He told them how long she had been serving and that most of them, including him, had never known. Then he asked for volunteers. Fourteen people came forward, among them a young man called Preye who worked the sound desk and said he could easily come early on Saturdays. They drew up a rota. Two people every week, never one.
When Mama Adunni was discharged, she insisted on coming back. The pastor agreed on one condition: she would not lift a bucket for three months. So for those months she sat on a plastic chair in the corner of the hall every Saturday afternoon with her radio and her arm in a sling, telling the volunteers exactly how the communion cups should be dried and which drum had the leaking tap. Preye said she was the strictest supervisor he had ever had.
At the church anniversary that December, the pastor called her to the front. She refused at first and had to be fetched by two of the ushers. He read Romans 16:1-2 aloud, and then he said, “I commend unto you our sister Adunni, a servant of this church, a succourer of many, and of myself also.” The congregation stood and clapped for a long time. She covered her face with her wrapper.
She still comes on Saturdays, though not every Saturday now. The rota will not allow it. And the pastor knows her surname.
Teaching Companion
For Reflection
- Who are the people in your church whose hidden service makes everything else possible? Do you know their names?
- How does the description of helps as “taking hold of a load” change the way you see practical service?
- What does the choosing of the seven in Acts 6 teach about the spiritual seriousness of practical work?
- If you serve faithfully, are you carrying a load that should be shared? Who could you invite to help?
- What would it look like for your church to “acknowledge them that are such” in ways that are both grateful and protective?
This Week
This week, find one person whose quiet service benefits you at church and thank them personally and specifically, naming what they do and what it means to you. Then look for one practical load you could take hold of yourself, and offer to serve alongside someone already carrying it. If you lead a team, ask each member this week how they are really doing and whether their current role still fits their season of life.
A Prayer
Lord Jesus, You came to minister and to give Your life, and You received gladly the service of those who supported You. Thank You for every hidden servant in Your church, for those who clean, cook, welcome, drive, count, mend and pray without being seen. Forgive me for the times I have taken their labour for granted. Teach me to acknowledge them, to share their load and to protect them from exhaustion. Show me where I can take hold of a burden so that others can stand. Let me serve heartily, as to You, trusting that You see in secret and forget nothing done in Your name. Amen.
Truth received brings freedom. Truth believed establishes the heart.
Scripture quotations are from the King James Version. · Illustrations using first names only are composites unless stated otherwise.