Pastor’s Corner: “Better Together”
Come join our “SUNDAY MORNING SMALL GROUPS” this Sunday April 25th at 10:00am as we start a new study: “Who do You Say I Am?”
1 Thessalonians 5:11 – (AMP) – 11 Therefore encourage and comfort one another and build up one another, just as you are doing. Ecclesiastes 4:12 (NLT) – 12 A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.
Being open and vulnerable is not easy. When asked how we’re doing, it’s more natural for us to respond with, “I’m great, blessed, and wonderful!” rather than the truth, even if we’re having a rough time. I think most people would agree that this is true for them as well. We would rather do anything else than be honest and say we don’t have everything under control. Admitting our weaknesses and asking for help is not easy.
If we look deeper, what keeps us from asking for help is actually good, old-fashioned pride. Our culture glorifies independence, but God created us to be dependent on Him and others too. Asking for help isn’t just biblical, it’s beneficial! In Ecclesiastes 4, Solomon tells the story of a man who toiled under the sun and was depressed because all his work was meaningless. He goes on to explain that when you have a friend by your side, everything changes: “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up” (Ecclesiastes 4:9–10). God’s Word makes it clear that finding friends and being honest about your struggles sets you up for greater success than you would have alone.
You can go to church every weekend and not let anyone know you. You can fake your answers when people ask how you’re doing and not have anyone to help you when you fall. Or you can admit that you need help. The enemy’s plan is to divide and conquer. Keeping you isolated from other believers prevents you from growing spiritually and from fulfilling God’s plan and will for your life. The enemy will use distractions, busyness, laziness, fear, shame and anything else that he can to keep you disconnected for the Body of Christ. You are loved and missed! Are you struggling with loneliness? Are you tired of feeling overwhelmed? Is there a lack of spiritual growth in your life? Is your love for God and others growing cold?
I encourage you to join or rejoin our Cornerstone Sunday morning small groups that start at 10:00am every Sunday morning. We are re-booting with a new Study this Sunday April 25th: “Who do you say I am?” This is a question Jesus asked His disciples and a question He continues to ask us today. Come join us to discover the blessing of fully knowing who Jesus really is and how this can impact and change your life. Let us walk this Road together.
Lord, thank You that we don’t have to walk alone. We lay down our pride today and ask that You would help us get connected with other believers who we can be honest with and receive encouragement from. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
In His Grace,
Pastor Hamilton