GATHERED
February 6, 2020
Prayer: Lord show us if we need to help out someone in need.
Scripture: For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them. Matt. 18:20 NIV
On the way to our school, I noticed this group of geese gathered in the same yard every day. I thought that they must really love it there to be there so often. I pointed them out to friends and visitors as we passed by, just amazed that they were always together in that same yard. One friend remarked that they must get fed there. Another thought that they must stay together as a family even enjoying or protecting each other. Maybe they were protected there. On the way home from church during hunting season I saw a field full of birds, while hunters just sat there. That is when my husband explained decoys to me…and I realized that the geese I had seen day after day were not being fed, protected, or fellowshipping in that yard – they were plastic! I prayed, “Lord, never allow me to be a decoy.” There are times that I have gone to church for the wrong reasons. We might go out of routine, to see our friends or show off a new outfit. Sometimes we hear the latest “updates” on the division at the last business meeting or the problems between one group and another. We meet in our prayer groups, churches, Bible studies, and fellowships and people go by and think, “They must get fed there,” or maybe “they must feel like family and enjoy being there.” I pray that all of those thoughts are true. I pray that if they come in to take a closer look they find real, warm worshipers who love like family and are fed there. In many parts of the world, it is not safe for Christians to gather. Many risk and even lose their lives to gather with other Christians and worship or study the Bible. Many of our prayer groups meet with resistance from their administrators – some receiving harassment and even threats to their jobs even though we are operating well within the law and meet with the encouragement of the Secretary of Education. My prayer for you this week is that you would know the awesomeness of the opportunity you have. You have an opportunity to not just meet God, but to know that He is in the midst of your gathering.
Copyright Kathy Branzell. Email [email protected]