Kittens and Community

Have you observed, I mean really observed a cat when it cleans itself?

Since I have a kitten, I have observed her several times when she cleans herself. She tries every possible position. She twists, turns and flexes her neck as far as she can to clean the areas that she can reach. She will muster up all her muscles, sometimes making herself into a ball. Sometimes she ends up twisted and turning so that her feet are in the air or she just stumbles over herself. One thing remains: no matter how hard she tries, she can’t totally clean itself. She needs someone to take care of her, clean her, feed her, teach her and just love her.

Oftentimes, we think that a person who has accepted Christ can learn or know God by just reading the bible or books about God or who God is. They may learn “about” God, but they will not completely “know” God. Learning facts about God is different than knowing who God is by experiencing Him spiritually and through other believers. We all need someone that will nurture, care, teach, feed, and love us in order to grow in our faith.

We forget, or should I say, neglect that one of the important parts of Jesus commands to his disciples is to “go and make disciples of all nations”. This means that we are commanded to nurture, care, love, teach, feed, etc. new believers so that they will grow in Christ. New believers learn the true love of Christ by the examples that they experience and see in other Christians. In the process, they also learn to pass on what they are receiving in from their leaders and experiencing in their spiritual journey. Mentoring is the core of Christianity. It shows the relationships that we have with God and with each other as Christians. Christianity is not about being independent, but being dependent on one another. In this way we learn about and grow in Christ everyday. If this wasn’t true, then Jesus would not have told us to meet and fellowship together and to “go and make disciples of all nations.”

Action Step

List 3 people: a mentor, a companion, and a disciple. If you don’t have one of each, make that your mission this month. Pray about it and open your eyes for the possibilities. Then just go out to eat together and talk about each other’s lives.

Question:

Do you have someone who nurtures you as you continue to walk in faith?

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Update on the New Home of the Sayenko Family

I shared with you in a previous blog post about the renovation project of the new home of Ptr. Sergei Sayenko and his family.

Now, I just want to share to everyone that the Sayenko family finally moved into their new “home” last Oct. 28. Thank God that the major renovation was completed before the cold winter begins.I visited their new home and it’s really nice and beautiful now. It was totally different from the first time I saw it! The people that worked on it did a great job. Although there are still some minor details to be done in some areas, the Sayenko family moved to their new abode already. It is bigger and therefore more comfortable for them to live in their new home.I am really happy for them and thankful to God and to the people that helped them to make this happen. The Sayenkos are very happy and thankful for their new home. Iliah (their oldest son) is so happy as he showed me around his new house and his bedroom.

I took some photos of the new flat. Although it’s a bit messy since they just moved in, at least you will get some idea on how it looks like now that the major renovation is done!:)

(Note: To view the entire set of photos on the new apartment — the then and now, click here.)

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