Growing our faith at Jason's Deli

Fellowship is an important part to a balanced Christian life.

As you’re starting to learn, I focus a lot on small groups and one-on-one conversations. It’s how we humans have the most meaningful conversations.

Here’s one easy way to do them: Go out to lunch with someone after church.

Anne and I try to do that most Sundays. We often go out with another couple, or sometimes a slightly bigger group. Jason’s Deli is a favorite spot, partially because of the “free” ice cream cone. 😁

Here’s a photo of our group at Jason’s Deli from this past Sunday. I’m standing in the back; Anne is to the far left.

Immanuel Comer, who is at the very front of the photo, and his wife, Stacy, have been inviting people from our church for an after-service meal for several weeks now. It’s an open invitation to anyone in our church. (Unfortunately, Stacy and their young son couldn’t make it to this meal).

Immanuel said he thought the fellowship part of his faith had been lacking lately, and this is how he’s trying to bring some balance to his Christian walk.

What a great way to spend a few hours on a Sunday: First breaking bread at the Communion Table in remembrance of what Christ has done for us on the cross (we at Good Shepherd Anglican take Communion weekly) and then breaking bread in fellowship with other believers.

Fellowship — talking and licking ice cream cones at Jason’s Deli — isn’t quite a Christian discipline like Bible study or private prayer. But it’s really important to a balanced Christian life.

It’s how we get to know fellow believers, how we learn from each other, how we have hard discussions about theology and a hundred other topics, and how we learn to depend on each other in good times and bad.

God is a relational being. The Father has always been in relation with the Son and the Holy Spirit, and God wants to be in relation with us. But he also wants us to be in relation with each other. That’s how he builds his church.