Are You Connected?

In the world we live in today connection is crucial. We have more ways to connect today than ever before. We’ve got telephones, cell-phones, email, instant messaging, Facetime, Facebook, Skype, and the list continues to grow as time goes by. Connecting to other humans is a natural desire, but sometimes what we find when we connect with others is not what we expected. Sometimes we “connect” with a police officer who has pulled us over for speeding, and that’s not exactly what we hoped for. Sometimes we “connect” with the principal at school when we’ve misbehaved, and that’s not really a pleasant connection to make. Sometimes, though, connections are good things, and we receive help from them or are encouraged by them. Maybe it was the counselor you spoke to about a problem you were having and they advised you about a way to peacefully (and legally) resolve it. Maybe it was a parent who gave some good advice that you took, for once, and great things began happening in your life. No matter what connections we make in life, we have to decide which ones are important enough to keep and which ones we want to leave behind us.

In 1 Thessalonians 3, Paul talks about how much he wanted to know how the Thessalonian church was progressing in the faith. He wanted to know so badly that when he was hindered from going to them (1 Thess. 2:18) he sent Timothy in his place to get an update about their faith in the Lord. In Chapter 3:6, Paul receives word from Timothy about the Thessalonians. Read Paul’s reaction in 1 Thessalonians 3:6-8:

⁶ But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us good news of your faith and love, and that you always think kindly of us, longing to see us just as we also long to see you, ⁷ for this reason, brethren, in all our distress and affliction we were comforted about you through your faith; ⁸ for now we live, if you stand firm in the Lord.

Paul is impressive. Every time that we read about him being imprisoned or mistreated, his first concern is whether or not the gospel is being heard and whether or not his fellow Christians are remaining faithful to Christ and continuing to grow in Him. Paul was tied to these new Christians in Thessalonica very closely. This close bond that Paul felt is an example of true Christianity being allowed to control the thoughts and feelings of an individual. Did Paul let himself feel depressed because he was in prison? Nope. In contrast, as long as the church was continuing to be faithful to the Lord, he was content in his own circumstances.

Paul had made a lot of connections with a lot of people in his life, whether it was the praetorian guard, or Caesar or anyone else. Paul decided that as a Christian, the connections he needed were those of fellow Christians. Those connections brought him closer to God, and allowed him to find joy even in the most difficult of situations.

How do your connections work? Do the connections you have chosen for yourself give you the advantages that Christian connections do, or do you find yourself being brought down by your connections? If you want to be brought higher than the influences of the world can bring you, get some connections with the church. Not just any “church” either, but a church who is trying to follow the New Testament and nothing else. If they are truly trying to be what the New Testament calls them to be, you will be lifted up by your interaction with them, and you will find that they call you to a higher place than the world does.

If you are in the Sacramento area and are looking for a group of people who try to follow the New Testament, come visit the Mariposa Avenue Church of Christ in Citrus Heights.