To Live is Christ — includes R and R

Yesterday was a super Sunday. The ladies in the class that I lead/teach fully blessed me with their discussion and insight into our Bible study. After that, the worship service kept my heart praising God. We sang, prayed, listened, and were blessed.

Throughout that hour, the smells from the kitchen held promise. When the service was over, we enjoyed a “chili cook off” in our gymnasium. Nine men from the congregation competed for the best chili recipe. Yum, and only a few spoonfuls left.

After the chili and some dessert, we had a budget meeting. In some churches, finance meetings can become family feud time, but in ours this almost never happens. About twenty minutes later, the motions were made, seconded, discussed and approved. As we took our dishes to the kitchen, I noticed a platter of leftover dessert, mostly chocolate in nature and a first. We never have leftover dessert, and certainly not chocolate.

When my hubby and I got home, the team we were cheering for won the semifinal football game. Later, our city’s hockey team broke a losing skid and won their game. We spent part of the evening thanking God for His blessings. My mind was mostly on our experience with our church family.

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:23–25)

I know that every church goes through times of struggle and lack of unity. Christians can have personal opinions, desires and biases that interfere with what God has given us through the Holy Spirit. However, Jesus Christ promised to build His church. Before He was crucified, He asked His Father (and ours) to preserve our unity. God takes care of His people. This makes church a blessed experience.

Humanly, we must persevere in doing the right things. I must consider the needs of my church family and look for ways to encourage them. This is God’s will for us. Sometimes we do not agree, but we are family and we work it out. We’ve learned that infighting divides us and ruins our testimony before those who do not know God. Unity and love make it known that we belong to Jesus.

Yes, eating together promotes development of relationships and simple sharing of our lives. Those sports games also give my hubby and me opportunity to cuddle on the couch without feeling like we should be “doing something” on our lists. Giving the above verses a liberal interpretation, he and I are “assembling ourselves together” and encouraging love too. We are also resting — for the good works we plan to do the next day!

It is that next day now, and the start of a new workweek. Having a super Sunday like yesterday recharges my batteries. Again, worship and good fellowship with other Christians show me the amazing restorative power of God.