Have you read Hebrews 3:13 lately?
“But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”
It hit different this past time I read it. Hebrews 3:13 calls for active, mutual support within the Christian community- every day! Those of us who are followers of Christ are not expected to be ‘lone survivors’ but are commanded to spur one another on when the walk is difficult, when the hard is uncertain, and when we are weary and want to give up.
And that got me thinking about a little outing I had with my parents this past weekend. We went to a knit shop.
Not just any knit shop, Spun- a family-owned yarn and fiber crafts shop in Ann Arbor, Michigan- which desires to bring people together to knit! (and it was a thing! - chatty women hanging out, laughing and learning together)
My mom was so excited to walk through the aisles. She wanted to show my dad all the different yarns—the colors, the textures, all the possibilities. (I loved all the buttons!) My dad, however, was not quite as thrilled. You could see it on his face. He was still processing everything he was seeing!
He needed a little encouragement to walk through that knit shop.
And as I watched them, I thought about how often we are like that.
Sometimes we are excited and ready to go. Sometimes we are overwhelmed by what is in front of us. Sometimes we know exactly what we are doing, and sometimes we are still processing it all.
And this is one of the reasons God has given us one another.
I know that we as women are tempted to ‘lone survivor’ it. We forget that the body of Christ is so very near. We forget that we are not expected to muscle through and do it on our own. We forget that we are not alone and that we are not living on an island as a lone survivor but in a community. CrossWay is a community. We love God, we love one another, and we are passionate about sharing the Gospel.
You are part of this community. Supporting, encouraging, and loving one another is a command. Biblical encouragement is intended to help guard against the subtle, hardening effects of sin and to thwart the enemy's schemes.
Did you know there is a woman who has committed to praying for you regularly?
You should know who your Connect Leader is:
so you can reach out to her and ask her for prayer.
So that you can look for her at church or other events you attend.
Because she will help you navigate a need you have, such as meals or other areas of service.
So that you can encourage and pray for her!
CrossWay is committed to making sure that every part of our body is covered in prayer.
Within the women’s ministry, we are intentional about connecting with one another —a net knit together, as Paul says in Colossians 2:2 “that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love. . .”
We are knit together in love.
But Why? Why are we knit together in love?
So that, together, we might reach the riches of full assurance and grow in the knowledge of Christ.
Christ is the goal.
We encourage one another so that we might know Him more fully. We pray for one another so that we might remain steadfast in Him. We walk alongside one another so that none of us is hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. We remind one another of the truth when we are tempted to believe a lie.
And sometimes, like my dad in the knit shop, we simply need someone beside us as we process what is in front of us.
What does your Connect Leader do?
Your Connect Leader has committed to praying for you and is intentional about letting you know about upcoming events.
At any given time, your Connect Leader demonstrates love and encourages you. She may send you scripture, remind you to attend an event, or just say hi and let you know she is praying for you.
Even though every person and every relationship looks different, we have a net of women who love one another very well. We need this net because we can not bring others to Christ alone. We are one body, one net, working together for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
This is my desire for us as the Woman of CrossWay: that (our) their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (Colossians 2:2-3)
Remember we are not knit together “to help us feel better”, or for social gatherings, or even for friendships with one another. We are not knit together merely to support one another; we are knit together so that we might know Christ more fully.
We are knit together in love so that, together, we might reach the fullness of assurance and grow in the knowledge of Christ.
Don’t get stuck in the process —encouragement is the means, but Christ is always the goal!
Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.
(1 Thessalonians 5:11)
Don’t be a lone survivor.
❤️ Meghan