Skip to content ↓

Day Eighteen – Experiencing Life Together

Articles Collection cover image

I need to belong not only to a church but also to a small group within the church. Life is meant to be shared and it is best shared with a small group of dedicated friends with whom I can experience true fellowship. The ultimate model for a small group is Jesus’ twelve disciples. He realized that a group that is much bigger than that causes people to shut down. Warren gives several pointers as to what is true fellowship:

  • In real fellowship people experience authenticity. Real fellowship is sharing authentic feelings, thoughts and concerns. It is being willing to make oneself vulnerable. True intimacy as Christians can only occur where there is transparency.
  • In real fellowship people experience mutuality. Mututality involves both giving and receiving. In true fellowship I will give of myself and expect to receive from others. This may involve accountability, encouragement, serving and honoring.
  • In real fellowship people experience sympathy. Sympathy is sharing in the pain of others. In true fellowship I will feel the pain of those I fellowship with. In the darkest, worst days of my life I will have the assurance that others will be there for me, to help me and to stand by me.
  • In real fellowship people expect mercy. In true fellowship I need to offer and receive mercy. I need to be willing to be merciful to others, realizing that my faults are as great as theirs’. I will never be asked to forgive someone else more than God has already forgiven me.

The chapter closes with a discussion of the difference between trust and forgiveness. Forgiveness is a must. I am required to forgive those who hurt me and to do so immediately and unconditionally. Trust, on the other hand, needs to be earned. I do not need to trust people as soon as I forgive them.

Bible Passages

Warren quotes the Bible fourteen times using nine translations and paraphrases. On the whole the passages are quoted with reasonable accuracy and used in their proper context. The Message’s version of James 5:16 offers more than the literal translation and the same is true for 1 Corinthians 12:25. He also quotes Colossians 3:13 twice in the same paragraph using different translations which present different meanings.

Point to Ponder

Today’s point to ponder is “I need others in my life.” This is a topic that is near and dear to my heart. Prior to coming to my current church I had never experienced a small group. I had heard of Sunday schools and Bible studies, but never the concept of a home church. In our church that involves a group of about six to twelve people meeting once a week to study the Bible and fellowship with eachother. It is where the heart of the church’s ministry really happens. Having experienced true fellowship like that, I cannot imagine going without. My home church is my life blood. It is a time to share what has happened in the past week. It is a time to share trials and hardships as well as praise and thanksgiving. It is a time to have others share in my Christian walk and to share in the walks of others. To me it should be an indispensable part of any church. In many ways I believe attendance at a small group to be equally or even more important than attendance at weekly church services! Rick Warren has had a great influence on the modern church and I believe that the emphasis on small groups may be his greatest contribution.

I am eighteen days into The Purpose Driven Life and am finding that last two days the best part of the experience thus far. I am looking forward to continuing the journey.

Up Next

Tomorrow’s topic is Cultivating Community


  • Carney Trump

    How Donald Trump Upended Canadian Politics and Helped the Liberals Win

    On April 28, Canadians elected the Liberal Party of Canada to a fourth consecutive term. This is a rare feat for a political party in Canada and in this case, one of special significance, for just months ago, the Liberals seemed destined for near-complete destruction. The cost of living was spiking, the quality of life…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (April 30)

    A La Carte: Young men wanted / The glory and danger of apologetics / God’s guidelines for sex aren’t arbitrary / How much is our church worth? / People loved the darkness / and more.

  • Erics Greatest Race

    Releasing Today: Eric’s Greatest Race

    My new book releases today! Eric’s Greatest Race is a fully illustrated graphic novel that tells young readers the story of Eric Liddell, the famous Olympian whose steadfast courage and commitment to Christ has inspired generations of believers. It is my sincere hope that it will introduce a whole new generation to a man whose…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (April 29)

    A La Carte: Has the decline of U.S. Christianity finally stopped? / Holding space for joy and sorrow / No one ever hated his own body / Wisdom principles for Christian parenting / The article you don’t want to read / A new book / Kindle deals / and more.

  • The Pursuit of Virtue

    God’s character is the essence of virtue. The heart of virtue is to know the Lord and to become like him, as a child resembles her father. That is the goal, privilege, and destiny of the redeemed. #Sponsored

  • When God Plants an Acorn

    When God Plants an Acorn, He Means an Oak

    We stood together on the crest of a hill, a gentle breeze rustling the meadow around our feet. The fields ran gently downward until they met a creek that gurgled happily in its course. A few years prior, an acorn had somehow made its way to the highest point of this hill, carelessly dropped there…