1 Peter 4:8-10
"Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms."
Today's Prayer Focus
- For the various small groups meeting in homes around the area. That they would flourish with gospel community and gospel growth.
- For God to raise up additional small group leaders as more people get involved.
- For our Small Group Leaders’ huddle on September 13, for vision, communication, and connecting to the big picture.
- For our homes to continue to be places of gospel hospitality in a fragmented culture, welcoming our church family and new guests who don’t yet have a church home.
"Offer Hospitality to One Another"
Mike Tilley
It appears from 1 Peter that church is a place where love is both tested and practiced. In the testing part, love covers a multitude of sins. The church is also a place to offer hospitality, to serve one another, and even receive strengthening grace from one another. These things would most likely be experienced outside of Sunday worship, in smaller, home-based communities.
These smaller communities are the heart behind our LBC small groups. The groups are diverse and meet various needs: women’s groups and a men’s group; coed groups with singles and marrieds; groups for young adults; and others. Our hope for each group is that they would offer gospel community, gospel growth, and yes, gospel hospitality. It’s such a great experience to know and be known, and to get to know people in their homes, sharing meals prepared by various members of the group.
For this fall, pray that our small groups would be places of great joy and refreshment. These groups will also be the “first responders” in times of crisis, so pray for those times too. May God use our culture of hospitality to create a thirst for Christ in today’s world.
Mike Tilley is the senior pastor of Lake Baldwin Church, and has lived in Orlando since 1994. He and his wife, Molly, worked with a core group from the Baldwin Park community to plant Lake Baldwin Church in 2006. Mike loves teaching the Bible in a way that relates to real life. In his spare time, Mike enjoys good movies, long dinner with friends, snow skiing, hanging out with his kids and two granddaughters, and travel.