I had a good conversation with Brendon last night about the purpose of the body and I want to relay some of that to you guys. Brendon shared with me what Omega (the small group they are a part of in the springs was about and it triggered a really good conversation about carrying one another’s dreams and visions. I know this has been a struggle for me as we have sought a church. A couple scriptures before I say more:
Hebrews 10:24 says:
24And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Philippians 2:1 and 2 says:
1If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.
So these two passages both talk about unity in the body. Often we interpret them to mean we need to share a common vision and dream. In reality though we need to be championing each others dreams, weather they are the same as ours or not. Brendon and Amanda have a heart for ministering to the ski communities in Colorado/Utah area. None of us here have that same heart right now. So does that mean we can’t make joy complete because we aren’t like-minded? No, no and no! Quite to the contrary we left Brendon and Amanda up and praise the Lord that they have a vision for something we don’t! Our response to them is (should be) “praise the Lord that he has given you a desire to serve him in this way!” Our response too often is to take a minimal interest in dreams and visions that are not our own. We fail to lift them up and spur one another on towards love and good deeds. Our whole purpose of meeting is wrapped around this one thing. Our spirit and purpose is not to minister in Colorado, or Bolivia, or Costa Rica, it’s not to save babies in the jungle or build house in Mexico or start a fortune 500 company in Chicago. It is to expand the kingdom. If you can honestly say that what you are doing is with that intent then the church is to cheer you on in that. To champion you in a way that prepares you to fulfill that calling.
So, you have an assignment for this week. I think anybody should be allowed to give assignments here, anything you want to do at the next meeting that people need to prepare for, put it up on this blog. My assignment is this. Begin to pray earnestly about what your calling is and what you want to be championed and spurred on in. Next time we meet we are going to share those callings, those dreams and visions, and encourage one another to them.
Discuss below.
Blessings family,
-Eric
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
This is really great Eric, I think it really taps into who we hope to be as a community and as a Church.
But don't you think that we already share a common vision and dream? To have God's Love pour our of our hearts, and bring The Kingdom down?
That our methods are different, but ultimately the reason and goal is the same?
I don't know if I know what it means to Champion one another, because I know that God calls each of us to our own gifts and skills, but that they will all be used for the Kingdom.
Each of us have a piece of the Bowl, and that in doing my skill, and in you doing yours, we are pouring out God's Love that much more fully. We have a responsibility to encourage and enable one another to do not only our skill more completely, but also everyone else in the Bowl so that Love is poured out in much greater measures.
There's also something very beautiful about the phrase, "then make my joy complete", it feels like a plea to the Body, ora reminder that bringing the Kingdom down is NOT easy. Our only real hope of doing any of this is in the Sprit that each of us hold.
So we can encourage and pray for each other in each of our differing dreams, callings, visions, for the future, how God can use us to to spread his kingdom and glorify Him. Each and every part of the body is important, crucial, and we all contributing different gifts. But we all are working toward the same purpose.
From 1 Corinthians 12:
4There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.
In some sense we may not be thinking about each other's visions and supporting them as much as we could, I for one am often guilty of not caring as much as I would like to about others visions and callings for the future, partly not knowing distinctly what they are.
1 Corinthians 12 14-17:
14Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 16And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 17If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?
But at the same time there are different visions and we need to keep in mind that we can't each do everything.
I do think, Eric that this assignment, as it were, is important so we can more full encourage one another. But it may not be so easy to determine what they are as you might think. Just some things to think about.
John
PS.
How can I post a new thread?
"So we can encourage and pray for each other in each of our differing dreams, callings, visions, for the future, how God can use us to to spread his kingdom and glorify Him. Each and every part of the body is important, crucial, and we all contributing different gifts. But we all are working toward the same purpose."
John, this is exactly it! Our dreams, callings and visions all work together, and yet can be very different from each other.
As for this asisgnment being difficult, it's true. It is not always easy to udnerstand what our own dreams and visions even are. Often we can not untill we are encouraged in them.
A couple weeks back we had a conversation with Dan Michelle. He had an incredible vision for a ministry that he wanted to begin. But he was very hesitent to share it with us because he didn't think it was a good idea. Once he shared it that dream began to grow and he was super excited about it. It's a perfect example of how the body should function. If the church is encouraging people to pursue the visions that he has laid on their heart they are able to grow.
-Eric
Post a Comment