Joining the Savior by building a local and online global Great Commission community, one person at a time.

8:45AM EST 

Four of us met online for a time of fellowship, study of the Word (Hebrews 11 and Abraham as he grew in faith and how that happened), and prayer. We learned that Abraham had serious lapses in his walk with God, yet our faithful God matured him, as God will mature us.

We have two older gentlemen who would like to join us, both of whom came to faith later in life (in their 80s and 90s).  They have problems with technology. We need to pray for them.

11:00AM 

We attended church at Fellowship Greenville, where we heard an excellent exposition of Hebrews 11:20-22 by Pastor Charlie Boyd.

Hebrews 11:20  By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau, even regarding things to come. 21  By faith Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff. 22  By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the exodus of the sons of Israel, and gave orders concerning his bones. (NASB)

Comment: Three men, old and declining, close to death, bless their children, trusting in God’s promises.

Scripture

Hebrews 11:13  All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14  For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. 15  And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16  But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them. (NASB)

Comment: The faith of Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph was of a future home, and for that eternal home, they learned to live.

Application: Charlie expressed a feeling that some of us share: that, whatever our circumstances, we aren’t quite satisfied. There is an unnamed longing for something more. He explained that perhaps that is a longing for our eternal home. I think he is correct. The more we grow in the Lord, the more we will long for the day when we will be with Jesus.

After Church, Deb and I met three new friends, including Summer, Jeshua, and Rachel. They are all single (they said “older singles,” but they seemed young to me). They have all been engaged in ministry opportunities, with at least two of them in the foreign field. We have invited them to join our Community Group, which meets in our home.

It is interesting that we have recently met several individuals with experience in international vocational ministry. These are people at Fellowship Greenville, in our online fellowship, and elsewhere (doctors, caregivers, ministers, workers). I am also familiar with the needs in Sulaymanijah, Iraq, where I will be traveling to in September and throughout the next year.

In Sulaymaniyah, there is a large refugee camp where the ministry I am connected to works. Perhaps a team could form to join our brothers and sisters in Iraq in ministering to the community’s social and spiritual needs. That would be very doable, (KS 🙂

1:30PM: Six of us from our Community Group met in our home for lunch. Well, one of us just turned two years old, but the other five spent time keeping little William out of trouble. We are still getting acquainted, we spend time sharing our life stories, and then we think through the morning message and how it applies to our lives. It was a lively discussion. We ended our time in systemic prayer (prayers that will help us in the fullness of our lives).

Now I am writing the blog post and getting ready to go to bed. 😇

Postscript

There are 423 of you (subscribers) from across the United States, with several from places like France, England, Nepal, and Kurdistan. You may wonder what all of this has to do with you. We desire (we believe it is God’s desire) to join our Savior in building His church globally. We hope to form an online community invested in making disciples internationally. Our Sunday ministries are part of that effort. The more we know about one another (share life together), the stronger our fellowship will become, and this will help us effectively minister the gospel globally. One person at a time. That’s what it has to do with you:-)

Goodnight