This morning we continue our series entitled, “Power of Fellowship.” For the last few days I have been talking about the supernatural aspect of coming together with other believers. When God is IN you and God is IN someone else, something special happens when you connect. Because God is not just IN you and IN them, at that point God also dwells amongst you. Today I will take a step back from the spiritual aspect of fellowship to something that is more practical. The Bible contains wisdom literature. These are books designed to share the wisdom of God. The one we will look at today is Ecclesiastes. This book was written by Solomon, a man who is considered to be the wisest man to ever live (outside of Jesus). Let’s take a look at something Solomon said about the importance of connecting with others.
(Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 Easy To Read Version)
9 Two people are better than one. When two people work together, they get more work done.
10 If one person falls, the other person can reach out to help. But those who are alone when they fall have no one to help them.
11 If two people sleep together, they will be warm. But a person sleeping alone will not be warm.
12 An enemy might be able to defeat one person, but two people can stand back-to-back to defend each other. And three people are even stronger. They are like a rope that has three parts wrapped together—it is very hard to break.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. The wisest man to ever live said, “Two people are better than one. When two people work together, they get more work done.” This may seem like common sense, but common sense is often not that common. For whatever reason, many people stubbornly attempt to do things on their own, struggling their way through things that would easily be accomplished if they simply requested the help of another. Don’t let this be you. If you need help, ask for help. If you can provide help, provide it. You were designed to be a relational being. Leverage the power of the relationships God has placed in your life. You will get much more done when you connect with others.
2. I have been in the Information Technology (IT) field for 29 years. For years I have been expected to be a person with “the answers”. People come to me to understand very complex technology and I am expected to make the complex simple. God has graced me to do it and thankfully I truly enjoy it. However, I don’t know everything, nor will I ever now everything. To do what I do, I surround myself with people who are much smarter than me, and I then leverage what they know, coupled with what I know. None of us is as smart as ALL OF US. That’s the power of teams. This is what Solomon was talking about. However, it takes a certain level of humility to acknowledge the fact that you do not know it all. In my field I have run across many who lack humility and who stubbornly, and foolishly, attempt to act like they know everything. These people eventually fail because their lack of humility keeps them from tapping into the knowledge of others. Don’t be like them. Humble yourself so you don’t get humbled in the process. Acknowledge the fact that you don’t know it all. That’s ok. No one person does. You need other people. Leverage them. God placed them in your life for a reason.
3. There is a freedom that comes when you embrace who you are and who you are NOT. When you know who you are, and even more importantly, who you are NOT, you are free to be you and to leverage others in the areas where you are not strong. If you are strong in an area where someone else is weak, and they are strong in an area where you are weak, if the two of you come together as a TEAM, you eliminate each other’s weaknesses. This seems like common sense, but unfortunately many allow pride to keep them from acknowledging their weaknesses. If you are humble enough to embrace who you are and who you are NOT, you will be in a position to leverage the grace God has placed on other people. This is the power of fellowship.
4. One of the greatest barriers to true fellowship is pride. If you truly want to be great you are going to have to get over yourself. You don’t know it all. You can’t do it all. You don’t have the grace to do everything. If you are in ministry, you have to be okay with the fact that you are not called to minister to everyone. You have to get to the point where you are okay with being YOU. Don’t envy others, because it devalues who God made you, and it also keeps you from leveraging what God placed on them. God wants you to be GOOD with being YOU and to allow others the freedom to be THEM. This way, when you come together, you can leverage each other and be better together! This is fellowship.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I thank You for teaching me the importance of connecting with and leveraging others. I get over myself. I refuse to allow pride to keep me from acknowledging my weaknesses and from leveraging the people You have placed in my life. I don’t know everything. I was not designed to do everything on my own. I have the grace to do certain things and others are graced to do what I am NOT. So I leverage them and allow them to leverage me. None of us is as smart or as strong as ALL OF US! We are better together! And from this day forward I will connect with others and allow them to connect with me. Together we lack nothing! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
