Blessed Sunday to you all! 

All are back at home again.  Bruce returned safely from the prison with a sore throat but wonderful stories of victory in Jesus.  Geni, Travis, Sarah and another friend all went to the State Fair tonight and ate their way through all of fried weirdness.  It seems to be an “all fried world” at our great State Fair.  

And as for me…I am on Fall Break (lovingly called Reading Week at Brite) all week long.  I am so looking forward to continuing to put “The Study”(my office) together.  I have all of the furniture. Geni built me a book case and a file drawer and I bought a heater that looks like a small fire place.  It is shaping up and I really like it.  It is cozy and very amenable to study and the occasional visitor.  Jackson and Lamar find their way in there and sleep while I study and I love it. 

Prayer:  “Lord, You created the church in the power of the Spirit.  Bless Your church today with that same power, and help us appropriate Your power to do Your will.  In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”

“So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.”

Acts 2:46-47

This afternoon I attended my first Disciples event.  The Regional Conference of Disciples was held via teleconference.  The title was “One Church, Many Places.”  The central hub of the conference was Brite Divinity School and the conference was then transmitted to churches all over the region.  Officers were elected, business was transacted and worship was led.  Songs were sung, prayers prayed, the Word was read and the Word was preached.  Eucharist was led through this live feed and enacted in each house of worship.  It was a perfect day to celebrate communion simultaneously with other believers as it was Word Wide Communion Sunday. 

The New Testament writers used words to paint pictures of the events of the life of Jesus.  In Acts the church was born in a Spirit-powered prayer and preaching service in Jerusalem.  From this passage in Acts we see just a glimpse of the daily life of those early believers.  In the temple worship was held and fellow believers shared daily meals together.  The passage says they “ate their food with gladness.” 

The early church was full of praise to God and fellowship with one another through community and new people daily came to know Christ through faith in Jesus.  Are we still using this practice of worship, fellowship and growing Christ’s church?  What does the picture of faith look like in our churches today? Let us continue to build up the Church, the body of Christ through building up the people so that the body of Christ resembles the picture of the church in Acts 2.

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes and say your prayers.  Count your blessings Love you all, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com     

I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am only moved by what I believe and I believe God.

Please pray especially for Tatum, age 6, our young cousin, as she begins cranial radiation tomorrow followed by 21 days of steroids to help her battle the Leukemia that has invaded her body.  Please pray for her and her family.