30 Days - an Overview of the Bible in Just Thirty Daysಮಾದರಿ

Where do I fit in?

Exciting things happen when the people of God get together to celebrate. We see that in the great festivals of the Old Testament and we see it again around the world today. At the festival of Pentecost people had experienced the visible audible presence of God. There must have been an extraordinary sense of worship and awe.

But awe-inspiring times of celebration where hundreds or thousands of people gather to worship may lead us to ask: ‘Where do I fit in?’, ‘How can I make friends?’, ‘How can I contribute?’, ‘How can I grow in my faith?’, ‘How can I be more effective?’ or ‘What can I do?’.

The answers were found in the groups of Christians that gathered in homes after Pentecost. They were led by ordinary people, men and women doing ordinary jobs. Similar groups exist today and are at the heart of church life. We often call them ‘small’ or ‘home’ groups. In our church, like many others, we call them ‘connect groups’.

Acts 2:42-47

These verses in Acts 2 describe the church just after it had swelled to well over 3000 people in its very first day of existence! On the day of Pentecost, the disciples had experienced the love of God being poured into their hearts by the Holy Spirit. Now this love overflows in three directions.

1. Love for God

• Teaching

‘They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching’.They wanted to know what God was saying to them. This ‘teaching’ can now be found in the New Testament. Through the Bible God speaks to you and you get to know Jesus Christ better. Connect groups are an ideal place to study the Bible together.

• Prayer

Their prayer meetings were never dull. They were times of great excitement. Again, connect groups are the ideal place to pray for one another, especially if you are going through a difficult time. You can also unite in small groups to pray for specific issues, individuals, or for your country.

• Food

They had a meal together and in the ‘breaking of bread’ they remembered Jesus’ presence and death for them.

• Worship

They praised God together. Expect to meet God intimately through worship. This is the highest and most fulfilling calling that you can know. Your main purpose in life is ‘to glorify God and enjoy him forever’.

2. Love for one another

Connect groups are places to love and be loved, to encourage and be encouraged. The atmosphere should be open, non-judgmental and honest enough to allow friendships to deepen. It should be a group of people who stick with one another through thick and thin. You should know you can rely on one another and trust each other totally, by the way you:

• Demonstrate love

These early Christians did not just feel love, they loved one another practically and actively on a daily basis. It has been said that if Christians were for one day what they ought to be, the world would be converted overnight.

• Support one another

There was a radical generosity of spirit which was entirely voluntary. Renounce possessiveness and share your resources. Generosity takes many forms: giving financially to one another, sharing your possessions and making time for one another, offering hospitality and practical help.

• Use your gift

Each person contributed their gifts: teaching, hospitality, giving or leading worship. The connect group is the place where you discover where you fit in. You minister to one another as parts of the body of Christ and find that your different gifts complement each other.

• Have fun together

‘They ate together with glad and sincere hearts’. A gloomy Christian is a contradiction in terms. A connect group should be, among other things, a place of laughter and enjoyment.

3. Love for the world

They went out into the world with wonders and miraculous signs. They were respected by everyone and ‘the Lord added to their number daily’. Look outwards. If connect groups look inwards, they will stagnate and die. If you are looking out, you will have the joy of seeing other people’s lives changed; the same sort of joy that parents have watching their children growing up.

The connect group is not always easy because all of us can be difficult to help and difficult to love. However, you are changed by shared experience and, within the highs and lows of such a group, you discover the joy of true community.

This is the church at its most vibrant and attractive. It is vital to be an active participant in a church which encourages you in your faith and gives you an opportunity to serve God. You cannot do it on your own.

If you do not already belong to such a group, pray that God will guide you and then find out how to get connected to a group in your church.

Prayer

Lord, thank you that the church is a place where I can belong, serve and grow spiritually – a place I can call home, family and find friends. I pray that you will help us the church to be a community of love in our words and actions – that we would love the world as Jesus does.

References

© Nicky Gumbel, 2024

This reading plan is adapted from the book 30 Days by Nicky Gumbel. It is published by Hodder and Stoughton in the UK, and by HarperCollins Christian Publishing in the USA.