When Two or Three Are Gathered

Jesus statement that when two or three are gathered in his name he is in their midst, seems to suggest that he is with us differently when we are together than how he is with us each as individuals. This would mean that there are things that happen when the church gathers that cannot happen when she doesn't. 

If this is true, then it is a strong defense for the concept of corporate grace that is NOT available to individuals alone--which is the argument for sacrament, whose Mother would be the Church. If that is true then the Church is no longer an option--she is essential to faith.

A definite shift in imagination.

On Faith & Work

Over the years I have caught myself trying to use my faith to find an easy way around hard work. The older I get the more I am convinced that faith leads me to be persevering more than it helps me skip or avoid hard, difficult places. I thought faith would preempt things like diabetes and it was a wake up call when it showed up in my body--then I found myself being led, not to pray for healing, but to pray for the resolve to do what I needed to do in order to get it under control (hard).

I think this is true in relationships/work/career decisions/et.al. Faith empowers us to handle hard more than it eliminates it. Texts like this one in Ecclesiastes 11:6 illustrate this point: "In the morning sow your seed, and at evening do not let your hands be idle; for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good." Faith keeps you moving, trusting God will evidence fruit, it does not protect you from unnecessary work by showing you where the harvest is first.