God has called us to serve not for only ourselves, but for others, so we can love others. The world tells us to look out for what is best for our own interests. Yet various cultures tell us that sharing things with others and building a community is important. TV shows like Mash, Cheers, Seinfeld, and Friends are shows about people around them. All of the things around myself are meaningless unless I can share them with others.
Fellowship has its roots in Jesus and his disciples living daily and supporting each other. Real fellowship is sacrificial giving, loving, and being authentic. It's not just having a snack and enjoying small talk. Authenticity is being honest about the good and bad things. And you're supposed to ask for help when you need it.
We are awkward because we don't want people to see our pain. The masks actually hide who we truly are. We need to take risks to develop our maturity. It takes risks and it comes with honesty and being genuine. The New Testament repeats "one another" or "each other" over 50 times. We have a responsibility to love the people we are called to love. We are to give sympathy (not give advice) to others by affirming them, loving them, being patient, and doing it at times we don't want to. Yet we are self-centered, prideful, and we have egos.
Matthew 11:28-30 has Jesus giving us an invitation to come to Him because He knows we can be overwhelmed. We are encouraged to lean on and support each other in the most difficult of circumstances. In the place of grace, there is also mercy. There is no fellowship without mercy, forgiveness, or grace. We are called to do this every day with the love of Christ.
We also don't understand what people are going through. Only God and Christ completely understand, so we need to pray for mercy and grace.
Colossians 3:12-17- Jesus gave up his throne so that we could all have fellowship with one another. Let's try to remember that.
Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)
Instagram: l.a.seoulguy
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