Someone shared yesterday about a vision (a mental picture) one of his TLC members had last Sunday. In the vision the member saw a group of people, some of them JOY members, standing in a fellowship setting. Then, a fog came and surrounded them. Out of the fog came out tentacles that separated people from each other. The fog represented a spirit of confusion that comes over people that prevents people from seeing clearly; the tentacles represented works of the devil that try to separate people and create division.
As we considered what is happening in some of the members' lives, we could tell this type of division was at work. Some people are upset at each other, and some have not attended church for a while because of relational strains. Others want to leave a TLC, etc. Going forward, we see a greater possibility of division, with the elder selection process for example.
It is imperative that we pursue unity of the spirit. After St. Paul severely rebuked an immoral member of the church, and after a time of the member's repentance, St. Paul asked the church to forgive and restore him to fellowship for "we are not unaware of the devil's schemes" (2 Corinthians 2:11). What is the devil's scheme? To create division in the church, and through that division destroy people's spiritual lives. And that kind of scheme happens constantly around us. People leave churches because they are hurt by someone and eventually quit their relationship with God. These are not just small relational problems that we can overlook. People's eternal destinies are at stake. It is imperative that we pursue the unity of the spirit.
The best way to do it is first to pray. Pray for protection. Pray for humility among us all to seek unity. Before we try to humanly bring unity, we need to pray, for our struggle is not against people, but against the spiritual forces of evil (Eph. 6:12). Second, we reach out to people, humble ourselves and reconcile. Do not let one person perish because of our pride. We commit ourselves to do all we can to restore fellowship, knowing that their eternal life may be at stake.
After hearing about the vision, the group of us spent time praying for protection of our church. This morning, I shared the vision at our staff meeting and again prayed for protection. I ask you right now to pray for protection of the church, and if you know of anyone who has fallen away because of relational issues that you would reach out, call, email, etc., and bring them back to fellowship. Blessings.
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