Weekly Thing 10.27.06
Proverbs 27:17
As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Hebrews 10:25
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hello everyone,
First, my apologies for not getting the Weekly Thing out to you all last week. Things have been very, very busy with getting prepared for doing college ministry, with support raising, and the days just kept flying by.
In the past two weeks, my heart has been full of praise to our God for the many things that he has been doing. And there are a few things that I would want to bring up, but my thoughts are instead turned to community and friendship.
I’ve written in the past, on a number of occasions, about the importance of community in the Christian realm, so for some of you this may be redundant. We could all use hearing these things again though - especially me.
What’s interesting about being a Christian is that it is rarely possible, if at all, to be fully stable without being a part of some kind of community. Actually, the very fact that we’re human makes that a difficult task. The way we are made is fundamentally relational, and as believers our faith is also fundamentally relational. Our love for God is fueled by the fact that God loved us first; apart from having a relationship like that with God, what is the point of faith exactly? Why believe in something like a god at all if the god doesn’t lovingly care about you? I think that this is a big reason why people do not believe in God-they miss the fact that He is a loving God. Fundamentally, God is relational. If He weren’t, being Three in One persons - Father, Son, and Holy Ghost - would be awfully difficult.
Because the Christian faith is fundamentally relational, and because we as human beings are fundamentally relational, it would make sense then that we are designed and purposed to be in a community. Adam needed a companion because it wasn’t good for man to be alone (Gen 3:18), and the same still rings true today. It is not good for you or me to be on our own. American culture especially preaches complete and total individual independence, but you know what? We’re designed to be dependent.
First and foremost, we are dependent on God for the very air that we breathe, life itself. Who keeps your heart beating in the dead of night while you sleep, none the wiser?
Secondly, we depend on each other for companionship, encouragement, rebuke, growth, and a number of other things. Fellowship is important to the life of a Christian, ever with the risk of putting Man above God. Although that risk exists, community is not to be totally forsaken. We can’t stand strong for long on our own… Brothers and Sisters in Christ, if we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing, keep each other strong by rebuking sin and encouraging praises to the Lord through Scriptural truths.
Let’s bring a little Animal Planet analogy into this:
A Zebra on its own is going to be taken down by a predator a LOT easier than if it remains with the herd of other Zebras.
A lioness on its own has a much harder time bringing down prey than she does when she works with other lionesses.
As heroic as it sounds, here’s another way of putting it:
Because we are a threat to satan, he wants to take us down, and he can do that a lot easier if we’re all by our lonesome. Because we fight against the forces of evil, being a part of an army whose goal is to stomp out the devil is a lot easier (emotionally) than trying to do it all alone.
Make sense?
So this is my encouragement and charge to all of us… Seek community with other believers. Live and work and breathe with brothers and sisters in Christ, while balancing that with time spent in the World, fighting the good fight. If you’re only looking out for Number One, it’s going to be awfully lonely battle that leaves you susceptible to all kinds of temptation.
I pray that all of us would seek community and really be an active part of a Christian community, primarily through a church. I pray that the Holy Spirit would put to rest our rebellious spirits that long to be totally independent, without help from anyone else. I also pray that we would really want to understand what community looks like, being a part of Christ’s body with HIM as the head of us all.
In love and in Him,
Your sister,
Yvonne
As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Hebrews 10:25
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hello everyone,
First, my apologies for not getting the Weekly Thing out to you all last week. Things have been very, very busy with getting prepared for doing college ministry, with support raising, and the days just kept flying by.
In the past two weeks, my heart has been full of praise to our God for the many things that he has been doing. And there are a few things that I would want to bring up, but my thoughts are instead turned to community and friendship.
I’ve written in the past, on a number of occasions, about the importance of community in the Christian realm, so for some of you this may be redundant. We could all use hearing these things again though - especially me.
What’s interesting about being a Christian is that it is rarely possible, if at all, to be fully stable without being a part of some kind of community. Actually, the very fact that we’re human makes that a difficult task. The way we are made is fundamentally relational, and as believers our faith is also fundamentally relational. Our love for God is fueled by the fact that God loved us first; apart from having a relationship like that with God, what is the point of faith exactly? Why believe in something like a god at all if the god doesn’t lovingly care about you? I think that this is a big reason why people do not believe in God-they miss the fact that He is a loving God. Fundamentally, God is relational. If He weren’t, being Three in One persons - Father, Son, and Holy Ghost - would be awfully difficult.
Because the Christian faith is fundamentally relational, and because we as human beings are fundamentally relational, it would make sense then that we are designed and purposed to be in a community. Adam needed a companion because it wasn’t good for man to be alone (Gen 3:18), and the same still rings true today. It is not good for you or me to be on our own. American culture especially preaches complete and total individual independence, but you know what? We’re designed to be dependent.
First and foremost, we are dependent on God for the very air that we breathe, life itself. Who keeps your heart beating in the dead of night while you sleep, none the wiser?
Secondly, we depend on each other for companionship, encouragement, rebuke, growth, and a number of other things. Fellowship is important to the life of a Christian, ever with the risk of putting Man above God. Although that risk exists, community is not to be totally forsaken. We can’t stand strong for long on our own… Brothers and Sisters in Christ, if we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing, keep each other strong by rebuking sin and encouraging praises to the Lord through Scriptural truths.
Let’s bring a little Animal Planet analogy into this:
A Zebra on its own is going to be taken down by a predator a LOT easier than if it remains with the herd of other Zebras.
A lioness on its own has a much harder time bringing down prey than she does when she works with other lionesses.
As heroic as it sounds, here’s another way of putting it:
Because we are a threat to satan, he wants to take us down, and he can do that a lot easier if we’re all by our lonesome. Because we fight against the forces of evil, being a part of an army whose goal is to stomp out the devil is a lot easier (emotionally) than trying to do it all alone.
Make sense?
So this is my encouragement and charge to all of us… Seek community with other believers. Live and work and breathe with brothers and sisters in Christ, while balancing that with time spent in the World, fighting the good fight. If you’re only looking out for Number One, it’s going to be awfully lonely battle that leaves you susceptible to all kinds of temptation.
I pray that all of us would seek community and really be an active part of a Christian community, primarily through a church. I pray that the Holy Spirit would put to rest our rebellious spirits that long to be totally independent, without help from anyone else. I also pray that we would really want to understand what community looks like, being a part of Christ’s body with HIM as the head of us all.
In love and in Him,
Your sister,
Yvonne