One of the coolest things about a life of faith in Jesus Christ is that it's personal but not individual. That means that each of us has the opportunity to discover and cultivate a relationship with God that is our own, yet none of us are left on our own to do that. The Bible teaches that God has given us the gift of each other, as the church, to serve and support one another as we grow in loving God, loving each other, and loving the world around us to a greater degree.

The term the Bible uses to describe this way of life is called church membership. From a spiritual perspective, it's used in two ways in the New Testament: in Ephesians 2, believers are called "members of God's family", and in 1 Corinthians 12 (among other places), we're called "members of Christ's body". Using those two metaphors, I hope you can understand the heart of God for a life of church membership - on the one hand belonging to one another and supporting each other unconditionally like we're family, and on the other hand partnering together as diverse people with unique strengths to perform a common function like the parts of a body.

Here at Southridge, we try to make those ideals of spiritual membership practical in the context of our local congregation through facilitating a local church membership affirmation process. And while the scriptures really only address church membership at a spiritual level, we've tried to apply those values tangibly here in our local expression of the Family of God and Body of Christ. Our membership affirmation process simply seeks to reflect on those Biblical ideals of being a Family and a Body together, and allows each of us personally to formalize a commitment to one another for the coming year. As well, we encourage an ongoing reflection on and renewal of that commitment, so every January we re-affirm our choices to live out the Biblical values of church membership here at Southridge.

So this January, take some time to relfect on the way your faith is personal but not individual.  And consider how you can function like a Biblical member of the Family of God and Body of Christ to a greater degere. And if Southridge is the place for you to do that most effectively, then formalize your commitment to local church membership at Southridge this year by going to www.southridge.cc/membership and affirming or re-affirming your membership.

God has given us a tremendous gift in each other. Let's make the most of it this year as we live out His values of church memebrship to a greater degree!