Fellowship (Bulletin Article for August 12)
Christians form a great family. We are brothers and sisters with Christ and have the greatest Father, God. We know one another. We care for one another. Some may be “closer” than others, but we are all a close-knit family.
Or are we? Can you name the people who sit in the pews around you? How about those who sit across the auditorium or in the balcony? If we don’t even know each other’s names, how can we say we care for one another?
Also, why is it that our fellowship meals have had very low attendance lately? I know that some have been away on vacation or visiting family this summer, but so many who come to Sunday evening services don’t even stay to eat a common meal with their family! We often have less than 100 people at our meals.
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not as “open” at these opportunities as I should be. I often sit by the same people, or greet the same people after services. This article is as much for me as anyone else. I need to improve in this area, but so do many others. If we are going to call ourselves a family, we need to know each other and we need to be together!
May I issue a few challenges to myself, and to each of us? See if you can try to accomplish these over the next month:
- Each Sunday, find someone you haven’t spoken to in a long time and greet him or her after services. Do this on Sunday morning and Sunday night.
- Invite a member (or family) over for supper that you have not had in your house before. It will be a blessing to you and them.
- Come to the next fellowship meal (September 2). Stay, eat and enjoy your time with your brothers and sisters in Christ.
- For a little motivation, find and study the “one another” passages in the New Testament. (To get you started, you can study Galatians 6:2.)
I need to ask myself, “How difficult are these things?” We often get into a routine concerning to whom we talk and about whom we learn. But we have over 300 members. Each is important, and each is a part of my family.
Christian fellowship is sweet. If you are not involved in that fellowship, you are missing out on a great time with your family. Let’s be loving and kind brothers and sisters in God’s family.
