Monday, September 08, 2008

Two Is Stronger Than One



In the men’s group I lead, we are discussing for the next 2 weeks the importance of men hanging out and talking. Not just talking about sports scores, but in depth discussions. Our group has really grown strong in the last few months and I praise God for what He is doing. It’s not about numbers (even through we’ve gone from averaging 4 to averaging 7 since June). The most awesome part about the growth the last few months is the spiritual growth of the men. I’ve had wives come up to me and tell me that they are seeing a difference in their husbands; now that’s God doing His thing in the men’s hearts and lives. It’s awesome to be used to point men in the right direction.

I saw a program on the History Channel (I love this channel) on Saturday about suspension bridges and how in order to support the bridge multiple cables are used. The builders put individual cables together with a steel shell and add pressure which creates, in essence, one big cable to hold up one side of a bridge. I shared this thought with the men yesterday how God does the same to us (His church). You have one cable and it’s strong, but when you put multiple cables together and hold them together with a strong bonding agent its super strong. Our outside steel shell is God and He adds the pressure (i.e. trials) to bond us and makes us strong together.

John Donne says no man is an island, and we (men’s group) discussed this idea yesterday. We are created to need other people and need to be part of a group or community. There is no such animal as a lone ranger Christian who is healthy spiritually. Without community or fellowship with other believers, you become stagnant. As the Bible puts it, two cords of rope are stronger than one cord. This is the same as the suspension bridge cable theory. Make sure you are connected with a community and grow in Christ. That’s why I’m passionate about small groups. You can call them Sunday School, Bible Studies, Cell Groups, Connection Groups, or even Discovery Groups. Whatever you call them, these are a great way to encourage and equip people to grow in Christ and create a super strong cable to support the bridge that leads people to Christ.

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