Readings for today: 1 Chronicles 3-5, John 7:53-8:11
There is an old story about a pastor who went to visit a parishioner whom he had not seen for a while. It was a cold morning so when the pastor showed up, the man had the coffee hot and a roaring fire going in the fireplace. They both sat down and the pastor asked how things were going. The conversation ranged from work to family to health to life in general. The man was doing well. Finally, the conversation got around to faith. And the man started to talk about how he didn’t need the church to worship God. He was doing just fine on his own. Praying. Reading the Bible. Walking through the woods. As he spoke, the pastor didn’t judge. Didn’t condemn. He simply reached over and with the tongs, took a coal out of the fireplace and placed it on the hearth. As the man spoke, his eyes kept going to the coal. At first it burned nice and hot but as time went on it began to grow cold. Having lost it’s connection to the fire, it eventually burned out.
Life with God is like that. Life with community is like that. I cannot tell you the number of people I have spoken with over the years who have experienced this loss of connection. Their lives are so busy. Their feelings of isolation and loneliness so strong. The pain they carry is so great and my heart breaks for them. So many of them have nowhere to turn. Their relationship with God has grown cold. Their connection to community is tenuous at best. They have no one to call when they are in crisis. No one to lean on when times get tough…as they always do.
God designed us for relationship. We are made in His image after all and He exists eternally in relationship with Himself - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. As such, we have a deep longing in our souls for connection. Connection with God. Connection with each other. It’s why one of the worst forms of punishment is solitary confinement. It’s just not good for us to be alone. It’s why I’ve learned to love reading through the genealogies in the Bible. It reminds me I am surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. Men and women of God who have walked this road before me. People with a story to share. Each name represents a person and each person represents a connection to God and to the people of God and ultimately, to the promises of God. Maybe it’s David, the man after God’s own heart. Maybe it’s Jabez who prayed to God for protection. Maybe it’s Judah who experienced the grace of God covering His sin. Over and over again, these names tell a story. Our story. This is our family history, friends. Our family tree. And as we tap into this story, we experience a deep connection to the One who made us. The One who loves us. The One who has come to rescue us. Even Jesus Christ.
As we emerge from the isolation of this past year, how are you intentionally rebuilding your connection to God and to His people? How are you helping others rebuild their connection? It’s not easy. Especially when we’ve gotten used to being apart. It takes hard work and intentionality to re-introduce ourselves to each other. To shake another person’s hand or give someone a hug. It may be uncomfortable at first as we exercise relational muscles that have atrophied over the last year. But it’s absolutely essential if we are to thrive moving forward. So if you don’t know where to start, let me recommend four spiritual practices that will help…
Daily Devotional Time: Spend time each day in prayer and reading/reflecting on Scripture. Find fifteen minutes or thirty minutes or an hour just to be with God. Use your commute. Use your lunch hour. Use your break time. Accept God’s gracious invitation to spend time with Him.
Weekly Gathered Worship : Find a local church and plug in. Gather physically when you are able with God’s people for worship each week. Don’t approach it as a consumer experience (i.e. what did I “get out” of it today) but rather trust God to create a “cascading” effect in your life on a subconscious level through His Spirit as He draws you to Himself.
Join a small group: Find a few Christian friends and start meeting together intentionally for encouragement, vulnerable sharing, and accountability. Pray for each other. Talk to each other. Intentionally do life together. Will it be messy? Yep. Pursuing authentic relationships always is because we are all “authentically” sinful! :-) Press through the difficult conversations. Practice forgiveness and grace. You will find deep connection as you do.
Find a place to serve God’s Kingdom: Don’t just build this “connection” for yourself! Find a way to share it with others. As you go out to serve Christ and His Kingdom, you will become someone else’s point of connection to God and to community. Isn’t that awesome? God will use YOU to be His hands and feet in another person’s life.
Do these four things over the course of a lifetime and I guarantee...GUARANTEE...you will grow a deep, abiding relationship with Christ and with God’s people. Will there be disappointments along the way? Yes. Will you feel hurt at times? Absolutely. Is it easy? Nope. Not in our world. But nothing worth doing is EVER easy and that is particularly true when it comes to the most important relationship in our lives! So place your trust and your hope in Christ and let Him lead you to the abundant life He promises!
Readings for tomorrow: 1 Chronicles 6-7, John 8:12-38