If you’ve been reading along with the Bible reading plan, it’s possible you’ve made your way into the book of Hosea. If you’re unfamiliar with the book – it’s a marvelous story of redemption, love, and God’s faithfulness. The book of Hosea parallels the story of a woman’s unfaithfulness to her husband and the people of Israel’s lack of faithfulness to God. The book is a must read.
As I was reading Hosea 1 this morning, I came across verse 11. It says, “In that day you will call your brothers Ammi – ‘My people.’ And you will call your sisters Ruhamah – ‘The ones I love.’”
Students like to make nick names for everything; including their cars, their teachers, or their friends. In high school, my group of girl friends called ourselves, “Ruhamah.” Which meant, “The ones I love” from the book of Hosea. We considered ourselves to be a small group. We met regularly to hang out, talk about God’s word, and enjoy life together. These girls were among some of my closest friends and some of the most influential people in my growing faith. I remember one of my friends telling me years later that it was in that group where she got comfortable with praying out loud. There is no doubt in my mind that it was in God’s plan for these friends to be in my life during my teenage years to help me make the right decisions, to learn more about God, and to live a life full of love to those around me. These friends helped make all the hard days of high school seem so much easier.
Last week, Bob spoke about “God, You Want Me to Do What?! – Be in Relationships.” I cannot imagine my life without having a group of “heart and soul” people around me – helping me navigate through life, especially when a rogue wave hits. Who are those people in your life and in what ways do they encourage you to grow in your faith? Are you in a small group?
In January, we’re launching small groups at our Woodbury Campus. Honestly, I wish we launched them last week. But here is my challenge to you – if you’re not in a small group, check out our online group finder tool: https://ebc.infellowship.com/GroupSearch. (We’re still updating our database to reflect Woodbury groups – so if you don’t find anything under our campus, look at other campuses. While it may say WBL, they could very well be meeting in or around Woodbury and haven’t updated their location yet.) Here, you can find groups that are full of Married’s, Singles, or our newest groups – Financial Peace University. There is something available for everyone.
If you’re in a small group, or you didn’t find one interesting to you, I’d encourage you to think about facilitating or leading a new group. It isn’t as scary as it sounds. Trust me. We’re here to walk with you every step of the way. Interested? Shoot me an email or pick up the phone. I’d love to talk with you more about the opportunity.
How is God leading you to “Be in Relationships” this week?
