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When we all gather together for kingdom purpose it will trigger the sharing of resources. I have realized that churches that operate with one common goal and agenda that their contributions to the kingdom are greater, more consistent and impactful. When a church is divided on the direction it should take, the result is smaller resources, inconsistency and less impact for God’s kingdom. The latter example struggles to get support financially or physically (in attendance) for its programs and activities. Whereas the former performs at maximum capacity while completing tasks on time and successfully. This is because the sharing of resources is always preceded by the sharing of a mindset. Here’s a rhetorical question for you. How can we expect to share finances (one of the most precious of all resources!) unless we first share a common goal in which to use the finances! When done right, a church can sponsor a global missions program that results in helping people accept Jesus as Savior. Tens of thousands are reached and blessed because of the pooling of resources from a group united in common purpose.

Another characteristic of this early church was their fellowship with God. Acts 2:46 reads:

“They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord's Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity” (NLT).

This was key because their relationship and fellowship with God showed up in other areas of their lives. Daily worship was the main ingredient in the early church’s spiritual diet. Do you seek to strengthen your relationship with God on a daily basis? Does your church encourage that practice? If not, why? The results of a daily commitment to God are tremendous. When we prioritize our relationship with God (“the vertical”) we residually experience greatness in our relationships with others (“the horizontal”).

The last thing I glean from this scripture passage is that this group of believers had peace. Does your church experience the peace of God? This has been largely scarce for me in my experience. This is because so often a visionary with a good idea allows it to become a bad one, because of a failure to follow God’s instructions. I, like most men, have put together desks and entertainment centers around the house. It never fails that towards the end of the project that there are extra parts left. In my experience, I have leftovers because I have failed to follow the instructions step-by-step. Similarly this happens in the church. Time after time, leaders get trapped into pleasing people rather than pleasing God. It is a path that leads to division and finally disaster for a church. There can never be a substitute to obeying God’s instructions for our lives (1 Samuel 15:22). I will end with this quote that I heard last week in my morning worship service. It really touched me and confirmed that this topic needed to be discussed because of the misdirection that is taking place in churches across the globe today. It is time that we as people of God take a vigilant and violent stance against all kinds of hypocrisy, false doctrine and traditionalism (Matthew 11:12). This was spoken by the pastor of the church I now attend and he said that, ”this church was on a divine experiment to prove that when you do what God said, you get what God promised”. I hope that we all personally live out that challenge before God.

"God's Words For US" from Cecelia Lester

Renew a Right Spirit