Part Of A Fellowship
by Dan Jones, M.D.
Acts 2:42-47
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
What a sweet description of the fellowship in the early church Luke provides for us here in these verses. The Christians in the early church clearly enjoyed spending time with each other – and lots of it.
Church attendance can seem like a real pain and nuisance to a Christian if our heart is not right. This may be particularly true for health professionals. We seem to have a built-in excuse for missing church as our jobs often require us to work during regular church hours. I’m grateful for those in my life who have encouraged me to make church attendance an important part of my life, even during busy and stressful times – especially during those times.
My parents began this encouragement to be a part of regular worship with a group of believers. They went to church with me and provided me the early discipline of regular attendance. My wife, Lydia, has always been an encourager in this regard, as well. Many Sunday evenings, I would have missed the joy of fellowship without her encouragement to get off the couch.
In my first practice, I was a member of a congregation with a number of physicians. I was surprised to see so many physicians who were committed to regular church attendance. These men set an example for me that formed habits that have lasted through my career and they taught me early morning rounds on Sunday would allow you to commit to teaching a Sunday school class. They taught me it was okay to attend church physically tired. I learned through them the spiritual refreshment of Christian fellowship for a tired body.
My daughter, Jennifer, demonstrated for me the importance of encouraging others with regular worship attendance. During our days in Korea, Jennifer rarely fussed about going to church, in spite of the fact that she could comprehend little of what was said in those Korean language services. Even during her early teen years, she was faithful. On a number of occasions, my Korean friends remarked to me what an encouragement it was to their families to see my children in church each Sunday.
Lord, thank you for the sweet fellowship with fellow believers. Thank you for the example of faithfulness to worship and fellowship demonstrated by others in my life.
Dan Jones, M.D., MACP, FAHA, a board-certified Internist, a former medical missionary to Korea, professor of medicine at the University of Mississippi School of Medicine, Dean of the School of Medicine, and Chancellor of the University of Mississippi until 2015. Dr. Dan Jones is a member of CMDA.
Dr. Jones welcomes any comments or questions about what he has written and can be reached at - djones@umc.edu
Rounds with the Master, Spiritual Pearls from the Great Physician Devotionals are released every Monday and Thursday.
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