When people in our congregation meet people from their congregation, they can say with enthusiasm, “Your pastor spoke at our church last month. It was great!” So connections are being formed and strengthened among Christian neighbors, for the good of the kingdom.
It’s easy for reformed churches, and Christians in those churches, to feel isolated from other Christians in their communities. Because of the doctrinal differences, the depth of theological convictions, and the distinctiveness and simplicity of our worship, it can be difficult to connect and collaborate with other local congregations. As a result the years can pass by without our churches having any meaningful contact with neighboring congregations, and we begin to view (and worse, act) like the only believing island in the middle of a vast ocean of unbelief, as alienation and pride begin to feed off each other.
Because we do have convictions we can’t violate, solutions to this problem aren’t easy to come by. But here are a few things our congregation has been doing to increase our sense of unity and love for other local congregations.
First, for two or three months a year, we pray for a different, local congregation in our morning worship. During those months, each week I contact a local pastor to ask for prayer requests and let them know we’ll be praying for them.
