A Snapshot of a Healthy

The church is a family, comprised of people from all walks of life, saved by the same grace of God through Christ. These people then choose to live and work together for the cause of Christ and the glory of God in unity of purpose. In the closing chapter of Romans, Paul shares his heart to the church. In the first 16 verses, he greets, commends and sends love to the brethren and from the brethren. In so doing he gives us a snapshot of the church.   

THE CHURCH IS THE PEOPLE

He mentions 33 names in 24 verses, two households and there those whose names are not mentioned.  Each of these are quietly and faithfully doing their duty and building relationships. They served, they suffered, and they loved. This is a helpful reminderthat the church is the people, not the programs, building, or necessarily the meetings as helpful as those are. In an ever program-minded society we have to remind ourselves of this truth: the church is the people. 

THE CHURCH IS MADE UP OF ORDINARY PEOPLE 

In the same vein, we also need to remember that the church is made up of ordinary people. It is easy to read the accounts of Scripture and think the people in the Bible were extra-ordinary. But in reality, they were ordinary people doing ordinary things. The church is made up of ordinary people, faithfully and consistently doing ordinary things, in ordinary ways, enabled by the extraordinary grace of God. Dear Christian, do not despise the ordinary.

THE CHURCH IS MADE UP OF DIVERSE PEOPLE

These ordinary people in the church are from different cultural backgrounds, religious influences, and different social economic statutes and in different seasons of life. Pursuing unity does not mean we should all be the same. We need to learn to embrace and appreciate diversity. If we are to build one another up, we definitely need to remember that God does not intend to just call people from our tribe but from all tongues, tribes and nations. Unity is best appreciated in the midst diversity. 

THE CHURCH IS MEANT TO DEEPEN RELATIONSHIPS

As diverse and ordinary people choose to live and work together in Christ, the need to develop genuine, growing relationships is ever urgent. If we are to grow in love, minister to one another through the use of our gifts, exercise hospitality and bear with one another, relationships need to be present. Every Christian needs to be intentional in developing relationships with their church family. 

Our world is individualistic and consumer driven. Therefore, when we think of the church we often think buildings, projects and programs. We also think what this church can offer my family and me. It is easy for the Christian to also be sucked into that mindset. However, we need to remember that the church is made up of ordinary people pursuing meaningful relationships as they worship and serve their Lord.

Why We Do Not Encourage Others

We are called to encourage one another. The church should be a fountain flowing with praise and commendation toward one another. A fire not flamed goes out. A relationship devoid of encouragement dies slowly and painfully. A deficiency in encouragement coupled with a surplus of corrections and criticism makes for toxic and rotten relationships. The Bible exhorts us to spur one another to good works through encouragement (Heb. 10:24-25), to protect one another from the deceit of sin by means of encouragement (Heb. 3:13) and to build one another up through exhortation (1 Thess. 5:11). That said, encouragement does not come easily, and here are four reasons why courtesy of our church family zoom discussion.

Not thinking it is important

There are times when we think giving words of praise or commendation is not essential. We assume people know we are grateful for their efforts. We think “they know I appreciate them, and besides, I said it last year!” We need to remember that the Scriptures admonish us to keep encouraging one another. If we are going to be guilty of anything, it should be for over encouraging.

Lack of meaningful relationships

Encouragement and criticism are easier to give and to receive in the context of ongoing meaningful relationships. The absence of such relationships can make giving praise hard and awkward for some. It is, therefore, not surprising that only the people we are close to are the recipients of our praises.

Pride in the recipient

It is painful to give encouragement or commend a proud person. Part of the reason we struggle to urge each other on is that we are already big-headed and full of ourselves. Sometimes this pride is seen in how we struggle to simply and humbly acknowledge commendation from others on some excellent work or virtue in our lives. The recipient’s pride is a hindrance to the ministry of encouragement.

Pride in the encourager

We envy and harbour jealousy because we are self-centred and proud. We do not rejoice when we see some good in others, and we are sad when we see God’s grace in the lives of our neighbours. It is this deep-seated pride that stops us from saying ‘thank you’, ‘that was a good job’, ‘the Lord is using you’, ‘you are talented or gifted’, ‘you are good at this’, ‘you are an encouragement’, ‘you handled that well’, ‘your Christlikeness is a blessing’ etc. Pride would rather, receive the praise, the recognition, the commendation. Pride is too preoccupied with self to see what God is doing in the lives of others.

Commending the grace of God in people and urging those who are following and serving the Lord is an honourable, humbling and yet pleasurable experience. God is not simply working in your life; He is at work in the life of others as well. Take note of that and say it. It is not just good manners; it is building up the body! May we develop reputations for being encouraging.

Three Guiding Principles in Times of Uncertainty

Every week on Saturday morning, I meet with a group of men for prayer. It has been an enriching experience in many ways. This past week one of the brothers shared three biblical principles with us as a way of encouraging us to navigate the times we are living in. Here are the three truths for your encouragement.

1.      Be careful who you listen to

There is so much that is being said: some good, some bad, some true and some false. When there is a crisis, and there is a lot of uncertainty, what and who you listen to may determine how you handle yourself and may influence your perspective on matters. In Psalm one, the contrast between the wicked man and the righteous man boils down to who and what they listen to. There are voices you should block out and their people who should not have your audience. But just as important as listening to the right voices in our lives. Bad company corrupts, that is not only true for teenagers, but it is also true of adults. Be careful who you listen to, during these times. 

2.      Do not stop working hard

Yes, there are uncertainties. Several issues should be a source of concern for all of us, politically, economically, socially and spiritually. However, we should be wary of the paralysis of analysis. Our fears should not cripple us and plunge us into inactivity. Some respond to a crisis by panicking and overreact, and others are gripped with fear and stop functioning.  Ecclesiastes (11:3-4) warns us of the danger of waiting for ‘our’ ideal time to act and looking to signs before fulfilling our responsibility. Do what you need to do and do it faithfully and diligently. 

3.      Trust in the Lord

Thy that trust in the Lord are not moved or shaken. Their anchor is cast firmly deep in the steadfast love of the Lord. The storms of life hit them, but they are unwavering, they keep their eyes on the Lord. It’s easy to trust in God when all is well. It is a different ball game, on the other hand, to believe in the wisdom, love and power of God when life is in disarray. It is in the moment of crisis that our beliefs are tested and exposed. Heed the admonishment of scripture, trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your path (Pro 3:5-6).

So, whatever situation you are in and whatever is going in your life. Whatever you decide to do or not to do. Make sure you carefully chose who you listen to, keep working hard and trust in the Lord your God. And we can be confident of this one thing, that the Lord will direct our ways.