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Good morning! May you know people care about you today. #MorningMug #Discipline2025

#Wordle 1,332 5/6*

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Not a great score, a bogey. But, it was good enough to beat the #OldGal who lost her streak today!!!

Practice in Community

We're wrapping up our series on spiritual practices, and today we're diving into the essential practice of community. While many of us here understand its importance, it's worth exploring why it's so crucial.

The Myth of Lone Ranger Christianity

American Christianity often emphasizes individualism—"me and Jesus." But this "Lone Ranger" approach isn't biblical. It stems, in part, from the Second Great Awakening and figures like Charles Finney, who promoted an individualistic gospel.

Historically, joining the church was a communal process, a deep commitment to the body of Christ. However, the modern focus on individual decisions has led to a disconnect from the importance of community.

Scriptural Foundation: Acts 2:42-47

Let's look at Acts 2:42-47: "They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

Devotion: A Daily Choice

Notice the word "devoted." It signifies an active, ongoing choice. Just like love in marriage, devotion to community is a daily decision.

They devoted themselves to:

  • Apostles' teaching: Growing in God's Word.
  • Fellowship (Koinonia): Deep, meaningful relationships.
  • Breaking of bread: Practicing the Lord's Supper.
  • Prayer: Communing with God.

True Fellowship: Beyond Surface Interactions

Fellowship isn't just attending church or social events. It's doing life together, sharing burdens, and celebrating joys.

The early church shared everything, ensuring no one was in need. While we may not replicate that exactly, the principle remains: we should leverage our gifts and resources to support each other.

The Challenge: Vulnerability and Invitation

Many of us struggle to ask for help, fearing we'll burden others. But the church exists to support us.

  • Are we inviting others into our lives?
  • Are we willing to be vulnerable?

We often prefer others to need us, but we hesitate to reveal our own needs. This one way street breaks down community.

Living Life Together: Beyond Sunday Mornings

The early church met daily, sharing meals and spending time together. In our modern, isolated world, we must be intentional about connecting beyond formal church events.

Our culture promotes isolation: attached garages, air conditioning, and busy schedules. We must push back against this trend.

Preparing for Storms: The Purpose of Community

Spiritual practices prepare us for life's storms. By practicing community when life is good, we'll be more likely to lean on each other when times are tough.

Jesus warned his followers of persecution. They needed community to endure. We need it too.

Your Challenge This Week:

  • Are you devoting yourself to fellowship?
  • Are you both giving and receiving in your relationships?
  • When life gets hard, do you invite others in?

Don't rob your brothers and sisters of the joy of serving you. Let them share in your joys and sorrows.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, help us be a people devoted to fellowship. Open our lives to one another, and help us bear each other's burdens. In Jesus' name, Amen

#Wordle 1,331 2/6*

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The #OldGal posted a 3, but it just wasn’t good enough.

Good morning! May you enjoy time in community today. #MorningMug #Discipline2025

A person holds a mug labeled "AROHA" in a cozy living room with a fireplace and patterned furniture.

#Wordle 1,330 3/6*

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The #OldGal scores a 4 and victory is ours!

Good morning! May you do something today that makes you smile. #MorningMug #Discipline2025

A person is holding a mug with a "National Baseball Hall of Fame" design in a cozy living room setting.

During the 1933 Prussian Synod Dietrich Bonhoeffer offered multiple theses to challenge the “Aryan Paragraph.” The “German Christians” were those aligning with the Nazi party, “We,” was the nascent Confessing Church.

Currently reading: The Bonhoeffer Reader by Michael P. DeJonge 📚

The German Christians say: The German church people can no longer endure communion with Jews, who have done them so much harm politically. We answer: This is the very point where it must be made crystal clear: here is where we are tested as to whether we know what the church is. Here, where the Jewish Christian whom I don't like is sitting next to me among the faithful, this is precisely where the church is. If that is not understood, then those who think they cannot bear it should themselves go and form their own church, but never, ever, can they be allowed to exclude someone else. The continuity of the church is in the church where the Jewish Christians remain.&10;Michael P. DeJonge, Clifford J. Green&10;The Bonhoeffer Reader&10;#kindlequotes

#Wordle 1,329 4/6*

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The #OldGal also scored a 4 today. I have seen some threes from the #YoungPups already. Also? Cool word Wordle.

Good morning! May you choose to respond with joy on whatever circumstance you find yourself in today. #MorningMug #Discipline2025

A hand holds a "Michigan" mug in a cozy living room with plush furniture and a fireplace in the background.

Jesus in Conversation - Simon Peter

Over the years I have given out a lot of nicknames. Why? I don’t know. Nicknames for me are a term of endearment. When I give you a nickname it’s because I like you and you mean something to me.

When two people are in love they often give one another pet names. You know, things like “honey,” “sweetie,” “darling,” and the list goes on. When they get mad at one another they use their “real” names.

Speaking of getting mad, growing up I knew that I was in trouble when my mom used my full name. If your mom drops all three names, that’s when you try to find a place to hide, because it is not about to go well for you.

Continue Reading →

#Wordle 1,328 4/6*

⬛⬛🟨⬛⬛ ⬛⬛⬛🟩⬛ ⬛🟨🟨🟩⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

The #OldGal scored a 3. She’s back on track…

Good morning! May you notice the small joys all around you today. #MorningMug #Discipline2025

A hand holds a mug in a cozy living room with a lit fireplace, armchairs, and a sofa.

Here’s the second of the theses that Bonhoeffer penned to challenge the Aryan Paragraph in 1933. Again, it reads as very timely for our moment in history.

Currently reading: The Bonhoeffer Reader by Michael P. DeJonge 📚

A quote by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “The German Christians say:&10;We don't want to take away from Jewish Christians the right to be Christians, but they should organize their own churches. 6 It is only a matter of the outward form of the church.” M A quote by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “We answer: (1) The issue of belonging to the Christian community is never an outward, organizational matter, but is of the very substance of the church.&10;Church is the congregation that is called together by the Word.&10;Membership in a congregation is a question not of organization but of the essence of the church.”A quote from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “(2) To make such a basic distinction between Christianity and the church, or between Christ and the church, is wrong. There is no such thing as the idea of the church, on one hand, and its outward appearance, on the other, but rather the empirically experienced church is the church of Christ itself. Thus to exclude people forcibly from the church-community at the empirical level means excluding them from Christ's church itself. That part of the church that excludes another is, of course, the one that is truly shut out-that is the particular danger of the German Christians' undertaking.”A quote from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “(3) When the church's organizers exclude anyone, they are interfering with the authority of the sacraments. Here in our church, Jewish Christians have been accepted, by the will of God, through the sacrament of baptism. Through baptism they are joined together with our church, and our church with them, by indissoluble ties. If the church that has baptized Jewish Christians now throws them out, it makes baptism into a ceremony, which implies no obligation on its part.”