The Fellowship of the Saints...

This has been on my heart as the Lord has been walking me thru this the past few years...

I guess I'd say my 'enlightenment' started in 2004, when I followed my Farmer East from MO to manage my dad's farm. I was a new Christian, and had been so blessed to have my sister-in-law nearby to disciple me and to share hearts with in the Titus 2 model, and in my new surroundings, I wasn't part of a congregation where the ladies easily talked about the Lord in their conversations that surrounded gardening, tupperware parties, and new dress fabric. I love discussing the everyday things of life, but it always felt lonely that there were many Sundays I would come home from church without having any deep conversations with anyone. I was glad for a very close friend from another church also was used to disciple me and to share hearts as sisters in Christ...for about a year after we moved, until she was called to another state 10 hours away. I was devastated. And lonely. But trusting God with the need of my  heart.

As the years rolled by, and my husband and I were called to go thru some trials and troubles, and to walk alone in many things, God brought to me a deep settled peace and contentment about all that. If He has me wherever He needs me to be, and how can I be unhappy about that, and instead why not simply plug in and minister to whoever He calls me to, while fellowshipping with JESUS?

I was devastated again when a friend shared that she doesn't like to be in conversations where others are speaking Scripture and encouragement into her struggle. She said she already knows what to do, she just wanted a place to vent. Since that time, I've met up with other women who feel the same way, and I wonder why? My heart desires the model for fellowship that God set up, one of them being 'speaking to yourselves in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs...' I delight in it when someone goes out of their way to share like that with me. I love it when there are good sharing conversations going on in the simplicity that is in Christ (not mixed with other religions).

God's heart is also that we fellowship with believers. The model he set up for fellowshiping (mentioned above), and the example we have from the early church where they 'daily' gathered together for prayer and sharing is an amazing window into what a gift God has given us in encouraging and teaching each other, sharing what God has been doing in our lives and thus, helping each other along the way to find courage, stability and new growth. I wonder why would we not all be jumping for joy if we are given those opportunities?

(could it be that some of us are too proud to let others speak into our lives?

could it be that we have oppressed people so much by the legalism found

in many of our religous backgrounds and we are gun shy?

could it be that we have gossiped about and slandered others and shot our wounded,

thus rendering people fearful and untrusting?)

I had to go thru a season where I walked a wilderness of loneliness, learning to be totally fine with the fellowship I found with JESUS, and the few that I found to share with who had moved away but could still communicate in other ways. I learned to be deeply grateful for fellowship in whatever form it was given to me, and to not insist that it happened in the way I thought it should.

I have been incredibly blessed with fellowship these days from many different places...The wonderful world of technology can be used for the glory of God, folks, if we but let it! I have known the joy of sharing on numerous techie places...the inspirational interaction with my friends on Facebook and Google plus is great!...the group hangouts and voxer chats I've known that centered on the fun, the godly, the serious, the funny, but always because Jesus as our common Denominator, have been quite a blessed encouragement to me... the texts messages and the Pinterest pins I am sent are amazing and delightful, challenging, encouraging, and uplifting. I've loved interacting with young people each year at Youth Bible School, and I've enjoyed hearing my daughters' hearts throughout the weeks God has given us.

We NEED each other and I would say that however you can be an encourager, 

go for it, if it is a godly way. 

In my journey, I have learned that it is not a good idea to push thru and insist that people have conversations that involve sharing hearts in the Lord if they do not want to. But I learned to appreciate community wherever it is found, and to get involved in whatever spiritual discussions land on my doorstep, delighted that God would send that my way. If you know of people that do not want to share with you in this way, then move along, let them be them, respect them and find community for yourself that is similarly minded. If you cannot find that, wait on the Lord. He will send to you who you need and when you need it.

If you have known loneliness, you just might be needing to let GOD be your all in all. He does that with His children who are serious about letting Him grow them and change them. He knows that we need that time of wilderness sometimes to get us to totally depend on Him for everything we need. 

My Father supplies all my needs. Thank you to each of you, my dear friends, for the encouragement  you have been to me...from wherever you are and however you send it to me. I am glad to know fellowship locally in my own geographical location, too...Thanks ladies from my church and surrounding churches. You have all been a blessing to me.