One of the recent rich blessings in our life together has been Community Lord's Days, mixing old and young, familiar and new faces. We were hosted by two couples, each with large families. It was so encouraging to experience an evening with children who eagerly participated in the Lord's Day prayers, thanking the Lord with some spiritually mature words of gratitude. Moreover, these children were obviously no strangers to service, pitching in, following their parents' directions. That these couples were willing to host "whoever signed up" speaks volumes about their commitment to our covenant.
As we offered our own thanks to the Lord these two nights, I shared what Lord's Days together have meant to us and the life of our community. For year after year, week after week, families got together, shared life and a meal, often with home-baked aromatic challah bread. In many ways Lord's Days together helped build the community as networks of relationships were formed and ultimately strengthened, getting us through challenge after challenge.
As Eileen and I have grown older, "invitations out" have been fewer; our own ability to regularly host Lord's Days has been quite limited. However, we joyfully celebrate the Lord's Day alone every week, knowing how essential it is in living out our covenant. So, to find ourselves "invited out" twice to share a Lord's Day meal with folks we might otherwise never have spent time with, to be among young, vibrant children whose faith is obvious and genuine has been an unexpected grace for us and a source of renewed hope for the on-going life of The People of Hope. We look forward to more "invitations out".
- Bob, People of Hope Member