The term "Deacon" literally means servant or waiter. This ministry is described in Acts 6:1-6.  In that passage, the Apostles of the church felt they could not complete the spiritual work they were doing as well as the physical work that needed to be done.  So, they asked the church to appoint spiritual men who ensure that all the widows in their church were being served food.  Today, at the Loveland Church of Christ, we have several Deacons who take the lead in making sure that specific physical ministries of the church are taken care of.