Week 7 - Living as a Foretaste - Day 31 - Monday

As a foretaste, the church embodies in its life the values of the reign of God. The life of the community is itself part oft the “good news”. The quality of our life together—how we nurture, guide, serve, correct, and love one another—is a foretaste, or sneak peek, of the reign of God. As a transforming people, the life and ministry of the church is characterized by sharing in the communion of the Holy Spirit; celebrating diversity in unity; living as stewards of God’s Gifts; and sharing in a community of mutual love and service.
Inagrace Deitrich

“Community as discipline is the effort to create a free and empty space among people where together we can practice true obedience…To create space for God among us requires the constant recognition of the Spirit of God in each other”
- Henri Nouwen
God’s family is meant to be a show and tell, a sneak peak, a foretaste of what belonging to and living in the Kingdom of God is like. God’s one plan, His mission for reaching the world and reconciling its wounded and broken, is rooted in His community. These broken and imperfect people are called “the church”. As this group gathers to be transformed by His Spirit, radical love can change their relationships and the world.
Scripture:
• Spend some time slowly reading and meditating on I Corinthians 13.
Reflection
• As a follower of Christ, what value do you place on community in comparison to other disciplines like prayer and Bible study?

Practice:
• Try to memorize all of 1 Corinthians 13 or just choose a smaller part and try to live out a sense of shared love and responsibility in various ways within your family of God.