Bridging the Gap Presents…
Resources for New Believers

Christian Fellowship

Christian fellowship sounds rather stuffy.  What’s that about?  It’s about who we hang around (with).  Why should that matter?

1 Corinthians 15:33 (NASB) says, “Don’t be deceived, bad company corrupts good morals”.   Or, as I tell my children, “If you want to fly with the eagles, don’t run with the turkeys!”

Now that we have become Christians, we may not be able to spend a lot of time with old friends.  Our desire to be Godly and to maintain a Christian lifestyle will definitely mean a change in friendships.  Many of the friends we kept company with were part of our sinful behaviors.  Continuing to associate with them could cause us to fall back into bad living.  And, certainly, we don’t want to avoid our old friends completely; but we do want new relationships to help us mature and to encourage us to make right lifestyle choices. It’s important to remember that we are not better than our old friends; we just can’t practice doing the things we once did.  And, as part of our Christian witness to them, we want to walk the walk, not just talk the talk.  Our goal is to win them over to Christ!

Making new friends can be an arduous task.  However, once you join a church and start attending, you will come into contact with others to whom you will feel drawn.  Join a Bible study group, go to men’s or women’s fellowship function, become part of the choir, or volunteer to do something.  There are myriads of ways to meet new people and develop new friendships.  Pick one! 

Above all, have fun with your new friends.  Many of the people in the church are outgoing and adventurous.  Choose friends who enjoy doing the things you like to do.  Many Christians like to fish, hunt, snowmobile, water ski, ride motorcycles, go whitewater rafting, camping, rock climbing, etc.  It is not a sin to have fun!  Don’t put yourself in a box and think being a Christian is dull and boring.  The easiest way to backslide (turn back to our old lifestyle) is to sit around and do nothing.  Live life to the fullest! 

Jesus tells us in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy;  I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Live it up!  The best is yet to come!! 

by Karen Geisen

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