As I function in relationship to the church, I depend on others in the church to help me understand God’s will
p.128
Share to the group a statement or scripture that resonates with you from today’s reading and a responding prayer…
God Speaks Through The Church
The church is definitely the body of church. I was reminded after reading today’s devotion that the church has many parts just like how my body has many parts, but they all work together the goods of His kingdom. It is absolutely important for me to get plugged into the local church, to be involved with the ministry God has tasked me with. The devotion is right, I can read Scripture and grow on my own all I want, but without the benefit of a congregation to grow with, it becomes quite meaningless. No community to keep me accountable for my actions, no one to correct or rebuke me, slowly I will become less and less of a Christian, that’s for certain.
Father God, thank you for creating the local church where I’m at. Thank you for anointing Bumble and the leadership board to lead Your church, fully obeying Your commands. I pray that as I grow more in my faith, You would allow to become an even bigger part of Your work on earth.
In today’s devotional, I grew a deeper appreciation for the church. The church has many different pieces and that is necessary. It’s good that not everybody looks the same or does the same things. As a church, we have to remember this and grow an appreciation for the different parts of our body rather than trying to conform everyone to be the same. We should appreciate and grow the different skills and talents in various areas of our church and watch it grow. I found this as such a good reminder for our church. Additionally, I think the phrase that says how a need does not constitute a call is so true. Wherever theres a need, I typically just want to go in and help. However, I must understand that that may not be where God wants me to be. I have to get confirmation from my church to see if God has been equipping and building me up for those aspects of life.
“that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.”
1 Corinthians 12:25 This verse is very relevant to our church today. I pray that God can use the things brought up so that we can work on bringing our community closer together and get rid of the division. May everyone be able to bring up their hurts or be willing to talk as Bumble spoke about on Sunday. Lord, I pray that I may love & forgive as you do. May I not have a heart that is content with division but always want to gather & include. May you heal the broken relationships in our church.
As I function in relationship to church, I depend on others in the church to help me understand God’s will. We usually think that our connection with God solely revolves around the Father and ourselves; however, we must remember that the church is the body of Christ as Jesus is the Head of every church. When we continue in fellowship with each other as a body of Christ, we can hold each other accountable and help the other experience the fullness of Christ. God made us mutually interdependent so that we can grow in faith together and deepen our relationship with the Lord.