Fellowship .....committment to one another.

From my study of God's Word I have learned that in worship we are committed to God, in service we are committed to serve, in evangelism we are committed to share, in discipleship we are committed to learn, and in fellowship, we are committed to one another.  The Greek word for fellowship is koinonia: common, having in common, sharing.  In Acts 2:42 we read, "They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer."  These followers of Christ shared their lives together.  This is amplified in 44-45, "All the believers were together and had everything in common, selling their possessions and goods, they gave to everyone as he had need."  For years this passage has baffled me.  Why did these people work in unity, function in unity, and devote themselves to unity?  Studies have been done among former POW's to decide what procedures used by the enemy had the best result in breaking down their spirit.  The findings revealed that it was not torture or physical deprivation that broke down these prisoners as quickly as did solitary confinement or disrupted relationships caused by frequent changing of personnel.  These POW's were not sustained by faith in their country or by the cause for which they fought, but rather from the close attachments they had developed to the small military units to which they belonged.  Although this is an example from the world, it shows that created beings and recreated beings, can't do without fellowship with one another. We are a close family and we are called to share in one anothers lives.  As we leave for Uganda, we need to demonstrate that Christianity is not a sole occupation.  It is a shared experience based on love and it is this sharing together that builds us up.  It is my prayer that we will so love one another that our African brothers and sisters will see in our commitment to relationships, the love of Jesus Christ.