Business * Busy-ness and Fellowship

James is still in progress but first this message ;-}

The other day I posted a quote from Paul Tripp speaking to how we seem too "busy" for fellowship.

I won't answer it here but the first question is, "What do you mean by fellowship?'  Ask 10 people you'll get at least 6 answers.  One thing to remember is that our "fellowship" IS - whether we are together in space of time or not.  If you want to focus on the being together or connecting - we are blessed with all sorts of new technical means for connecting.  If you focus on "meaningful fellowship/connecting" now you have a bigger and deeper issue to address.  It's not just enough to say we need "fellowship."  

Now - business and busy-ness.  Two different things but the definition will vary some with each individual.  But there is a business of living - living to honor Him.  We have to work jobs, raise children, cook, clean, get our cars serviced etc.  This is what I call business; meeting, in a godly manner, those responsibilities we have.  We all have to do business!

Yes, we can get caught up in the business of living and it can distract and detract from our individual, familial and corporate "walks."  But I suspect that is the exception and not the rule.  The Puritans had it down pat - Doing what was necessary/needful to meet our responsibilities was certainly business but that business was seen as  just as much service to Him as anything we do that is "churchy."

Working a job is business.  Homeschooling is business.  But taking your kid out for and ice-cream and some one on one time is business too (fun but business).   We need to be very careful as to what we see as legitimate and illegitimate business.  Which, of course, is why we have the Word, the Spirit and godly bothers and sisters.

Busy-ness on the other hand is not often necessary.  For ME busy-ness is what I do in a self-serving manner - convincing myself that it is necessary - that it is business and not just busy-ness.  See Mary and Martha - both were doing good things one was doing the "better" thing.  It's a discernment that takes focus and openness and prayer.  Am I doing just to be doing - to fill time - to distract myself or am I really doing something necessary (or perhaps "needful" is a better word than necessary.)

We often do busy-ness to distract us from business.  We often do busy-ness to avoid something needful that we find we don't like or are uncomfortable with.  We do busy-ness all too often out of a warped view of our worth and place.  Busy-ness is not needful.

When a tradgedy happens we encourage people to "keep busy."  We do this out of good hearts and silliness.  They need to be doing business not busy-ness.  (Of course they may need to do nothing at all for a bit as well).

Too busy for fellowship?  What is fellowship?  Business isn't not busy-ness.  Business is needful.  Busy-ness may or may not be needful.

So the quote I posted was intended to get you thinking along these lines.  Business/busy-ness.  Needful/not needful.

But most important - what in the creation do you mean by fellowship?  We have it 24/7 - it is God-given.  So perhaps we are thinking we need to get together and "get spiritual."  OK - that's Sunday morning.  Wworship is "in" fellowship (common) but it is not the place or time to focus on us.  

Maybe you mean a cell group or Bible study - that's fine but you have to have clear boundaries and expectations.  Just showing up and hanging out is not going to get it.  That would be a picnic or other social gathering by the Body - which is good and fun and not wrong but it's not, I don't believe, what the bible means by fellowship.

If you need teaching - ask for it.  If you need a prayer group, ask for it.  If you desire an accountability group, ask for it.  But "fellowship" is not what you create at those things, it is the context in which you do those things.

To be honest, when a lot of people speak of wanting "fellowship" they're asking to get together with others to hang out and have a shallow conversation about scripture and to spill all their problems on others.  I've seen it time and time again.  This is a curious thing and a distressing thing and I think it may be just another form of busy-ness - with a coat of Jesus laid on.

A lot of people desire an intimate relationship of faith with others.  That's fine but God needs to produce that - we can't program it.  We can program things that seek openness and candor but that's not intimacy.

But in the end we come back to - What is fellowship?  And, does what you seek fulfill the purpose (God's glory) for the fellowship we have with one another in Christ?  Maybe the question isn't What do I need?  but What does Jesus need for me/of me?

OK ramble over.
Business should be God honoring needful things.
Busy-ness can be more an escape and/or an excuse to avoid business ;-}.
Fellowship IS - we need to ask His guidance for experiencing it in space and time, in manner and method or it's just hangin' out (which is ok but is it fellowship?)