Thursday, June 21, 2007

Friendship (fellowship)

Good morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the warm, humid day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! We chatted with Terry at Sawgrass, for a while yesterday evening and Matthew has great fun with him, but we didn't do any walking, except for touring the Police Dept. building in Zephyrhills. Our nephew is Chief of Police there, and he showed us their new facilities, which are state of the art. The building is so self-contained that people can stay there in a hurricane, because all the generators are inside. It was fun and informative. Matthew has decided he does not want to stay in a holding cell. :)

From the Promise Bible:

How does the Lord change the quality of our fellowship?

Matthew 18:20 "Where two or three gather together because they are mine. I am there among them."

The promise of the Lord's presence transforms our fellowship. We draw strength from the testimony of God's faithfulness in other's lives. We learn to comfort one another with the comfort we receive from the Lord. And we experience love and forgiveness in practical ways.

How does God provide for us through fellowship?

Acts 4:32-35 "All the believers were of one heart and mind, and they felt that what they owned was not their own, they shared everything they had. And the apostles gave powerful witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God's great favor was upon them all. There was no poverty among them, because people who owned land or houses sold them and brought the money to the apostles to give to others in need."

Our fellowship with other believers is meant to provide for our needs in the most practical ways, God's love for us moves us to share our resources with each other. This practical expression of love unleashes God's power and empowers our witness to the world.

"You wake up in the morning with twenty four hours of the unmanufactured tissue of the universe of your life. It is yours. It is the most precious of possessions. No one can take it from you. It is unstealable and no one receives either more or less."
Arnold Bennett

I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!

Love and hugs,
Amaryllis (tomorrow, tomorrow...it's only a day away!)