Shine

I had the privilege this past weekend to speak at Shine, an event for women at Hilton Head Island Community Church. It was such a blessing to see God moving in the hearts of these women to start small group Bible studies at their church. We talked a lot about the importance of making connections to the body of Christ as believers. Those connections are what hold us accountable and keep us grounded in God's Word. We used the model of the early church found in Acts to set-up what a small group looks like and how each of us can participate. Acts 2:42 taught us that the believers were devoted to:

• The teachings of Jesus (the study of God's Word)
  


• The fellowship (the small group and the church)
  


• The breaking of bread together (communion and sharing of meals)
  


• Prayer (for each other, the small group and the church at large)
  

As someone who has been involved with small groups for over half my life now, it was a great reminder for me. I just finished Max Lucado's book, Fearless, and in it he has some great thoughts about the desire for the church to connect physically to the body of Christ. He reminds us that it is possible because the church is the body of Christ. He says, "When you interlock your understanding with mine, and we share our discoveries…When we mix, mingle, confess, and pray, Christ speaks." That alone should make the sacrifice of our time and energy worth the commitment.

I am so thankful to Cynthia Cullen and her team for having me and my family with them this weekend. We are blessed.