The fellowship of one another

Fellowship - A shared common interest.

"Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing."
1 Thessalonians 5:11

"Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another."
Proverbs 27:17

As Christians we should jump for the opportunity to fellowship with each other. We should look forward to those occasions when we get together to talk and share spiritual things. This occurs in simple conversations of any topic and somewhere in the exchange one or more persons brings up the Lord in relation and in context to what is being spoken about. These can be the sweetest of times with believers because we are sharing a common interest which is the Lord God.

Gone are the days when we use to flank the homes of believers just because. I can remember stopping by the homes of fellow Christians and having a snack. During those times important things would be shared with me as a younger believer. The opportunity for learning was had and oh the gems of wisdom and encouragement I received then, and those words has continued to carry me today.

We can clearly see the need for such gatherings. We need to go back to opening our homes for such interaction to occur. We need to value it at all costs. Life and its concerns, over the years, have kept us running from one thing to another week after week, month after month, and year after year. We've had little time between family, the job, school and church activities. We pass one another and have short segments of chit chat of sorts, but often nothing valuable is shared. 

I am seeing that we may be forced to go back to meeting in one another's home to conduct church services. We could easily lose our church buildings where for decades we have met freely without fear. Something is coming that will challenge each and every Christian where this is concerned.

Let us seriously consider gathering together informally in our homes. You don't need a reason except for the encouragement and strengthening of fellow believers. Let us make the time in our schedules for such an opportunity. It can be done once a month and for those who are retired, it can be a commitment to a weekly Bible study. Home Bible studies are the best. So much can be shared and learned, and it also fosters closeness.

May the Lord help us to value what He values and to appreciate the body of Christ.

"And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all."
1 Thessalonians 5:14

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