Guest Post from Susan Warren
Connection Ministry Leader at JIBC
On any Sunday as you enter the church building, I hope you are greeted with a smile and friendly voice. I am a people watcher. I love to see how people interact with each other in certain settings. In this particular setting, meaning our church, I love to see how people “connect” with each other. For instance, families with children connect with each other because their children are attending the same Sunday morning class together or because they are attending Awana together. On any Sunday morning, you can see those who are members of the same Connection Group “connecting” with each other and checking up on each other with “how is life treating you?” One of my favorite times to observe is when a visitor is greeted by a church member or a member of our Greeting team. Some of the most nervous faces of visitors have melted away into a sweet smile when you greet them, welcoming them to our church. Through these observances I see Christ working in and through people’s lives. I challenge you to look, to observe any Sunday, with an expectant heart to see Christ working in and though the very beings of our church.
Why do you think there are such a “connection” among Christ’s people? In my thinking about this I have come to understand that we all have a sense and need to belong to someone or something. In the past year our people have come together with others to “connect,” to live and do life with each other. You can see this lived out through our Sunday morning and weekday connection groups. In our Connection Groups, we come to together to study God’s Word, have fellowship with each other, seek encouragement and prayer from each other, and to join together in reaching beyond our walls to minister to others who need to know Christ’s love, healing and forgiveness. I have observed in the past year that being in a Connection Group is what has brought us closer to Christ and closer to each other. Some of you I have observed cannot help but share the joy of Christ and be an encouragement to others because of what you have been blessed with by being in a Connection Group. The joy of Christ, the encouragement you are to others, the smiles that radiate from your faces ministers to those who visit with us for the first time, ministers to those who feel lost and lonely, and ministers to those who are hurting and feel there is no way God could love them. Someone else’s joy in Christ can be very contagious!
Would you like more information on how to join or start a Connection Group? Contact me at susan@jamesislandbaptist.com or 843-762-0244. It is a pleasure to serve you!
Blessings, Susan
Why do you think there are such a “connection” among Christ’s people? In my thinking about this I have come to understand that we all have a sense and need to belong to someone or something. In the past year our people have come together with others to “connect,” to live and do life with each other. You can see this lived out through our Sunday morning and weekday connection groups. In our Connection Groups, we come to together to study God’s Word, have fellowship with each other, seek encouragement and prayer from each other, and to join together in reaching beyond our walls to minister to others who need to know Christ’s love, healing and forgiveness. I have observed in the past year that being in a Connection Group is what has brought us closer to Christ and closer to each other. Some of you I have observed cannot help but share the joy of Christ and be an encouragement to others because of what you have been blessed with by being in a Connection Group. The joy of Christ, the encouragement you are to others, the smiles that radiate from your faces ministers to those who visit with us for the first time, ministers to those who feel lost and lonely, and ministers to those who are hurting and feel there is no way God could love them. Someone else’s joy in Christ can be very contagious!
Would you like more information on how to join or start a Connection Group? Contact me at susan@jamesislandbaptist.com or 843-762-0244. It is a pleasure to serve you!
Blessings, Susan
