Good Morning and God bless you this morning! We are in the month of May. And it so happens that we will be starting another small series. Since we just got done learning that we are all a part of the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:12-27), I thought it would be good for us to go through a small book I discovered titled,
I AM A CHURCH MEMBER – Discovering the Attitude that Makes the Difference, written by Thom S. Rainer. It is a tiny book packed with a lot of insight! I will only be sharing excerpts, and summarizing from it. I would recommend that you purchase this book (Amazon, ChristianBook.com, or ???) and read it in its entirety. It shouldn’t be more than $10 – “very worth it!”)
Today’s Devotion: We will begin with the Introduction chapter of this book. (That way, it will give you time to invest in buying one for yourselves-😊.)
Introduction – A Tale Of Two Church Members Therewere two men who met at a Bible Study. They hit it off from the beginning. They decided to meet weekly for coffee. They had lots in common such as: sports, family, politics. But one particular morning, something was different. One of the men confided that he and his family were going to leave the church. He shared that the Pastor was not feeding them, there were things that they had witnessed, and things that they heard about, that they didn’t agree with, and so on. This was the response from his friend… “We are really two different types of church members,” he stated. “Why is that? Why do we have such different perspectives?” The Difference (Quotes and summaries from the book) I am suggesting that congregations across America are weak because many of us church members have lost the biblical understanding of what it means to be a part of the body of Christ. God placed us in churches to serve, to care for others, to pray for leaders, to learn, to teach, to give, and, in some cases, to die for the sake of the gospel. The Journey Join me on this journey of discovering or rediscovering the privilege and the joy of church membership. When this journey is over for you, two things will likely take place. 1) A renewed attitude about your church. 2) Your church will begin to change. It will become healthier because one of its members is healthier. And as the church gets healthier, it will have a greater impact on its community and the world.
Q: In the Introduction, why do you think one of the men decided to leave the church?
Q: Do you agree with the sentence that begins, “God placed us in churches to…?”
Next week >>> Chapter 1 – I Will Be a Functioning Church Member
Let’s pray: Dear God, Thank You for what we have learned about being part of the Body of Christ. Thank You for fitting each of us perfectly with each other so that Your plan is carried out. As we continue to learn what our part is, and how to work for Your kingdom with others that You have called, let us always have an open mind and heart to Your Spirit as You lead us. We want to be obedient to what You ask us to do. We come before You and lay our burdens and cares at Your feet. We ask that You would help us to remember those who are sick with the COVID-19 virus, those who have cancer, and all other illnesses; heal, strengthen, and touch them, in the mighty name of Jesus. We ask that you would minister to the families that the Agape Ministry has given grocery bags to this weekend. Thank You for giving us the opportunity to be used of You in this way. We pray all this, in Jesus’ name, amen.
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.