5/26/2016 0 Comments A life worth living Acts 2:42-47Common English Bible (CEB)
Community of believers 42 The believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the community, to their shared meals, and to their prayers. 43 A sense of awe came over everyone. God performed many wonders and signs through the apostles. 44 All the believers were united and shared everything. 45 They would sell pieces of property and possessions and distribute the proceeds to everyone who needed them. 46 Every day, they met together in the temple and ate in their homes. They shared food with gladness and simplicity. 47 They praised God and demonstrated God’s goodness to everyone. The Lord added daily to the community those who were being saved. I have often wondered how this would look in today’s world. With the hustle and bustle of activity that defines all that we are in modern society, how do we stop and make time for other believers? We barely have time to breathe or use the restroom, meeting and worshipping together daily seems a daunting task. Sharing food with gladness and simplicity?! Out of the question. If someone comes over for a meal, it’s going to be a big sit down affair or take out with Pinterest inspired place settings. At least, that was what I used to think. I have been hanging out with like-minded Christians for about a year and have discovered that this sort of community is possible in today’s world. The isolated, over-active lives we live aren’t an inevitability. Close relationships in the body of Christ can be real. For some of you that may seem like a no-brainer, but for me it has been a truly eye-opening reality. As verse forty-three states, a sense of awe has over taken me. When God moves in a person’s life, awe is a woefully inaccurate word to describe the beauty that transpires. The wonders and signs that have manifested from the relationships that we have built have been small yet significant to date. And the future accomplishments seem less like an impossible dream more like a promised gift from God. Blessings bring blessings. As humans, we were created to be in relationship with God the creator and other people. The interdependent nature of humanity calls us into connection with others. This is why we must choose our associations so carefully. When I hung around with drunks, I drank. When I hung around with a narcissist, my unique attributes were overlooked and diminished. I now hang out with beautiful people who believe in building each other up instead of tearing each other down. The amazing thing about building people up is that great accomplishments occur much more frequently when you are part of a team. We can build on the others strengths to form a solid foundation of growth. The Acts experience shouldn’t be exclusive to the church of the past. We need to forgo the busyness that doesn’t last and devote ourselves to our fellow believers. The urgent shouldn’t overshadow the important. Opening our doors to our friends shouldn’t be contingent on how clean my space is or my mood. The welcoming, inclusive spirit of the Acts church should be as alive and vibrant today as it was then. I love that I am experiencing a resurgence of that sense of community in my world today. The way we live our lives matter. The best sermon we can preach is a life lived well in fellowship with others.
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AuthorI am a Christian, a wife, a mom, and a part-time basket case who wants to be a full time writer.
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