Do You Have A Congregation?
As a Christian, have you ever thought about yourself as having your own congregation? Well, I hadn’t. Then I talked with a pastor of a small church who teaches his members that their individual “congregation” consists of the people with whom they will interact.
He explained that if 50 church members each touch five people during the week then there are 250 who hear some aspect of the Gospel.
“We have a culture that is not coming to church, so, the church must take Jesus to the world. I train those in my church to be pastors of their flock. I teach and they take it and go with it, and the Gospel gets spread,” he told me. (Note: his state has less shutdown restrictions than others).
Who is their flock? The people they may interact with more frequently—neighbors, friends, co-workers, even extended family. One widow teaches a home Bible study to eight women once a month. She also finds ways to connect with her neighbor or hairdresser or grocery store helper. And she is a good listener if they share their concerns and want her to pray for them. One 91-year old grandmother considered her 18 family members her congregation.
During this pandemic with its social gathering restrictions, who are those in our congregation? We are still a part of the Church Body even if many have been mostly stay-at-home folks for months. (However, thousands do watch church services online or on TV).
Recently I decided my congregation is composed of those I pray for daily and contact regularly by phone and email. I sent word to Shane, a friend’s son who is in jail, that his parents and I will be reading Psalm 91 for him each morning—a Psalm of protection. Two businessmen hit hard by this pandemic continue to phone me with specifics to pray for them to experience an economic recovery. And then there is a pastor in another country, and a fledging young writer, and a relative with cancer—all in communication long distance with me. And on it goes.
“We don’t really have to leave home to be ambassadors for Christ,” my friend, a single senior, told me, as she explained how many people she reaches on social media with her Christian blogs.
We all know that the Apostle Paul wrote letters directly to early church congregations with his wise teaching, encouragement and even correction. But sometimes he instructed one congregation to share his letters with churches in other cities. Some letters he even wrote from prison.
Today various tele-communication tools help us communicate Christ’s love whenever personal interaction is impossible. To those of you who are ministering one-on-one to people in the marketplace, workplace, or extended family, we thank God for your outreach. May the Holy Spirit empower you to produce much fruit for His Kingdom. Keep at it! Keep reaching out to your congregation.
Scripture:
Personally I am satisfied about you, my brethren, that you yourselves are rich in goodness, amply filled with all [spiritual] knowledge and competent to admonish and counsel and instruct one another also. (Romans 15:14 AMPC)
Therefore, encourage one another, and build up one another, just as you are doing. (I Thessalonians 5:11 NASB)
I will declare your name to my brothers; in the presence of the congregation I will sing your praises. (Hebrews 2:12 NIV)
See our book Warfare Prayers for Women, Available on Amazon
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