Day Seventeen: A Place To Belong

"You are members of God's very own family, citizens of God's country, and you belong in God's household with every other Christian." Ephesians 2:19b (LB)

"God's family is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth." 1 Timothy 3:15b (GWT)

Stuff That Stuck Out:

• We are created for community, fashioned for fellowship, and formed for a family, and none of us can fulfill God's purposes by ourselves.
• We discover our role in life through our relationships with others.
• Disconnected and cut off from the lifeblood of a local body, your spiritual life will wither and eventually cease to exist.
• The church will outlive the universe, and so will your role in it.
• The Bible says a Christian without a church home is like an organ without a body, a sheep without a flock, or a child without a family. It is an unnatural state.

WHY YOU NEED A CHURCH FAMILY

1. A church family identifies you as a genuine believer.
2. A church family moves you out of self-centered isolation.
3. A church family helps you develop spiritual muscle.
   
4. The Body of Christ needs you.
   
5. You will share in Christ's mission in the world.
6. A church family will help keep you from backsliding.

• God created the church to meet your five deepest needs: a purpose to live for, people to live with, principles to live by, a profession to live out, and power to live on.
• God's purposes for his church are identical to his five purposes for you. Worship helps you focus on God; fellowship help you face life's problems; discipleship helps fortify your faith; ministry helps find your talents; evangelism helps fulfill your mission.

Point To Ponder: I am called to belong, not just believe.

Verse To Remember: "In Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others." Romans 12:5 (NIV)

Question To Consider: Does my level of involvement in my local church demonstrate that I love and am committed to God's family?