“Therefore encourage one another and build up each other” (1 Thessalonians 5:11)
It has been over almost two months since we’ve been able to worship as a church in person.
More people are telling me how difficult this social isolation is for them. There are people who live by themselves and in care facilities in our church who have not had any meaningful touch for over eight weeks – no handshake, no pat in the back, no hugs. \
This pandemic has been hard and continues to be difficult for many.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”
When we focus on our own happiness we rarely experience it. However, when we focus on making a difference, making an impact, blessing others, happiness often becomes our reality.
It is true that the stay-at-home restrictions have kept us from worshiping together in person, but…
- They have not and cannot keep us from sharing our faith
- They cannot prevent us from encouraging one another
- They cannot keep us from praying for one another
- They cannot keep us from calling, from writing notes, sending letters, showing up with cookies and a note and leaving them on the door of your friends
NO ONE CAN KEEP THE CHURCH FROM BEING THE CHURCH!
Therefore, on this day, encourage one another and build up each other and be the church!
Praxis: Faith in Action 