We Are Connected

It was an absolute pleasure to write a guest post for Devotional Treasures yesterday. Alan Kearns is a wonderful writer, and his regular posts here on WordPress are extremely encouraging and uplifting – so do check them out!

It actually got me thinking a lot about WordPress in general and how I came to write here. I wanted to start a blog back in 2018, and not being especially in the know technologically speaking, I stumbled across WordPress. It was a name I had heard of, and so I signed up. My expectations were simply that it would give me a place to write from, and that it would be little more than a web provider.

I have to say that my expectations have been exceeded!

Beyond merely providing blogs and web sites, I never expected to find a thriving Christian community here. Yet it did not take long to find other Christian writers who I could not only read and follow myself, but who willingly read and followed me – regularly commenting and encouraging. Alan, as mentioned above, is just such an example.

Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Hebrews 10:25 (ESV)

I’ve thought about this verse a fair bit over the course of the pandemic, and particularly at times when our churches could not meet together in person. Meeting face-to-face is clearly preferable, but thank God for the Internet that allows us to engage irrespective of distance, geography or viruses!

In some respects, I am challenged by this verse from Hebrews. It says that some are in the habit of not meeting, and I find myself convicted that of late, I’m not in the habit of engaging with my readers or other writers here on the blog. Life is extremely busy, and the habit of writing regularly has slipped. If I have even a small gift in this area, then surely it is my responsibility to use it for God’s glory.

This verse also exhorts us to encourage one another. Where so much of the Internet is negative and hostile, I can honestly say I’ve never had a comment on the blog of criticism or assault. That is not to say that others have not challenged me on some point of my writing, but I’m pleased to say they have done so with love and mercy.

The verse ends by pointing out we should do this – encouragement – more and more as we see the Day approaching. What “Day”? The Day of our Lord’s return. There is, of course, much debate about what that will actually be like and speculation about when it will be. Many point at the day’s events; increasing earthquakes, trouble in the Middle East, and the pandemic as all being signs that the “Day” draws near.

Whatever you believe about such things, and I do humbly suggest you seek the Scriptures for yourself to see what it says, one thing I can tell you for sure is this: we are closer to that Day now than we were yesterday, and if the Lord tarries, we’ll be even closer tomorrow. That Day is indeed approaching, so let each member of His Body support and uplift the rest.

For as the body is one, and has many members, and all the members of the body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. ¹³ For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free; and were all given to drink into one Spirit. ¹⁴ For the body is not one member, but many. ¹⁵ If the foot would say, “Because I’m not the hand, I’m not part of the body,” it is not therefore not part of the body. ¹⁶ If the ear would say, “Because I’m not the eye, I’m not part of the body,” it’s not therefore not part of the body. ¹⁷ If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the smelling be? ¹⁸ But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body, just as he desired.

1 Corinthians 12:12-18 (WEB)

We are all part of Christ’s body. We need each other. We are connected. We are connected through the bond of the Spirit, and be it through WordPress or any other medium, we are joined together in love.

I write, in some small way, to strengthen the Body. What can you do this day?