The Follow Up Talk

This morning I read Romans 12 and it reminded me of our study group's conversation last night about our individual need for approval. Our pastor talked about this last Sunday and we reflected on who's approval was most important to us. Romans 12:2 says: "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." We were asked a seemingly simple question - How do we respond when people engage us in ungodly conversations? Do we participate to gain approval, or do we disengage and by doing so demonstrate godliness? The honest answer to this shows how much value we put on external opinions. If I'm honest, I can point out times when I have not demonstrated godliness because I wanted to fit in and create a sense of camaraderie. I placed too much value on the opinions of people and in doing so, was swayed away from God's will for me. Romans

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 Friendship and accountability go hand in hand. True friendship will tell you when you're wrong, or at least make you feel inside that you've missed the mark. That's what we want in Christian friendships. As believers, we want to keep growing in our knowledge of and walk with God. We want the fruits of the Spirit to be increasingly felt and seen in us. Most of all, we want to grow in our faith of God so that we can withstand the pain and hard realities of being humans in a fallen world. For this, we need our Christian community. We need brothers and sisters who will do life with us and become one "fold" in our cord. The image of verse 12 brings to my mind a mythical story that describes how everyone's life is represented by a golden cord. In the story, when the supposed right time comes, a mythical being cuts a person's cord, and that person dies. I forgot where this myth comes from, but the imagery popped in my mind after reading th