GROUPS--the life-giving power of community.



The book that we are using as BS material and I really got to say that I learn a lot from the last two BS. It was a great time of sharing and deep thinking, opening our hearts to receive God's Word.



So as I was doing this week QT, I came across a passage that spoke to me...

Its taken from Richard Foster's book CELEBRATION OF DISCIPLINE.



"Confession is so difficult a discipline for us partly because we view the believing community as a fellowship of saints before we see it as a fellowship of sinners. We come to feel that everyone else has advanced so far into holiness that we are isolated and alone in our sin...We imagine that we are the only ones who have not stepped onto the high road to heaven. Therefore we hide ourselves from one another and live in veiled lies and hypocrisy..."



I remember quite some time ago I did asked myself why is maintaining a relationship with people so hard. Friends and loved ones...especially in a church where fellowships, learning and sharing take place. Isnt it suppose to be better? The blue sentence somehow answered my doubt...I do have a certain expectation for everyone. I do view them as saints at some point of time. "I expect them not to do this, I expect them to do that...as a friend, you should have done that..as a Christian, u should not be doing this in the first place" We hurt when our expectation are not met. We forgive people but not forget, we keeping bringing up the past mistakes. We bad mouth abt them or avoid them. We expect them to be "good" rather than "bad" before we can talk or go out together..



Well...this sentence taught me something...we are all sinners. When we do something wrong, we, on our part, have to confess and repent. Allow other people and God to help us. When people share and confess to you, honour their trust, forgive and help them as much as you can. We are not saints, we do fall down time and time again. What a person need most sometime is a listening ear and a helping hand when we fall. Fellowship of sinners--we grow together as we help one another. Forgive and love...Thats what Christ is doing for us.



well....hope whoever who reads understand... typing while having some lecture notes flying in my head=P





ahquan

JESUSrocks.
7:34 PM