WEDNESDAY
This week for the devotional, since we had serve Sunday last Sunday and I was on vacation last week, I asked a few people in the church to share how they have experienced church/fellow believers as sacred space.
by Angie Fasanello
If I'm being honest... our initial pull towards faith was Church. The simple idea of a collection of people who cared for each other was available behind its walls -and that was the pitch I made to my husband (to convince/persuade him to give it a shot). In my years in sales, I was in front of a lot of husbands and wives/extended families. All of the ones who seemed happy (content), who were able to celebrate 25, 40, 50 and 60 years of marriage all had one thing in common... They were believers. I knew Jesus was a piece of the equation, but I also knew we just needed to start somewhere... Church. And we did! We were welcomed with [excited] open arms from people who couldn't wait to hear our story... They were hungry to hear how God was moving. Now, I totally get it. Our step towards faith was us walking across the threshold of our first church experience... We were blessed to be surrounded by people who made sure we knew that no one could stand in between us and Jesus and that the relationship piece was available to all who wanted it. We were pointed toward others who were firm in their faith, and encouraged and inspired to want to know Jesus in a more intimate way.
Over the years I've noticed something about how I converse with believers. There's a beautiful unspoken exchange that seems to happen. This way of communicating life, feelings, triumphs and pitfalls. It's the Holy Spirit in us... moving us towards each other and keeping us connected. I believe God's design for the human experience was to be in community with each other. Growing, learning, loving... and it's all possible without Him. No doubt... But once you experience it with Him, it just makes [more] sense."