Day 10: Fellowship (Divine Connections)
“We had good fellowship together; and we even walked together in the house of God!” Psalms 55:14 ISV “We had intimate talks together with each other and worshipped together in the Temple.” Psalms 55:14 Good News Translation I give thanks for fellowship with the folks in my life I consider Divine Connections. My life has never been the same since these dynamic folks walked into my life and I've engaged in divine encounters with them. Several years ago, I entered into a phase/season of my life that I declared Chapter 2. Because I’m planning to live until I am at least 120 years old, I liked the idea of splitting my life into time frames of a generation. I also knew that after surviving the “hell” of the first chapter of my life, I was completely closing the door to that chapter and putting the sign of the cross on it as a prophetic declaration that it was completely over, finished, and never welcomed to be repeated or exhumed again. Entering into this chapter of my life, I made some bold prayer request which were attached to some serious expectations. I purged some relationships because I could no longer tolerate the attitudes, behaviors, expectations and straight usury that came with them. Cherishing and embracing the wonderful relationships that I do have, I wanted more like them. One of my heart’s desires in this new chapter, which turned into a prayer request, was to have and meet genuine people, with whom I could really have dynamic and engaging relationships. I wanted some to share my religious beliefs so that we could share commonalities of faith, pray together, share scriptures, and deepen our relationship with God together. I wanted some to have the same career pursuits or be on the path to pursuing their own careers so that we could grow and learn together. I wanted some to be in the process of “finding” themselves so that I could see and learn new perspectives of life and be reminded to deepen and continue establishing a firm foundation for myself. I wanted some who were elders, who had sage wisdom to pour into my life, who were vulnerable enough to show me their mistakes so I could learn from them, and who could throw down in the kitchen and teach me to burn even better. I wanted folks with whom I could be real and honest. I wanted to be able to let my hair down and show the real me without people being undone when they discovered that I too was human. I wanted to have “real talk” conversations that people would not be scared to have, avoid or judge. I wanted people in my life who would listen and hear (process) what I had to say. I wanted people who would understand my love languages (quality time & physical touch) and find it not impossible to fill my love tank. My list of specifics concerning this prayer request of new people entering my life seemed like it went on forever. (Honestly, it actually did.) Can I just say that God is absolutely amazing? God listened to the specifics of my request and answered every one of them. OMG! If I showed you all of the new, wonderful folks that have been divinely connected to me in the last few years, you would be so amazed because you’d see how each person who entered into my life fit into specific categories of my prayer request or overlapped in all categories. I have some really amazing friends who I love so dearly. (I tell them all the time that they cannot get rid of me even if they wanted to! Lol.) I know every single one of them have been divinely brought to me by God because of how we met or because they so closely “fit” in a specific category or categories for which I prayed. They share life with me even if they are millions of miles away. They are movers and shakers in their respective career fields, if they are not retired already. They can hold great conversations; they spend quality time with a sister and don’t mind checking in to tell me that I am missed and loved. One of my all-time favorite things is that they all listen, hear (process what I say), and are mindful of me. I can be really honest with them about what I’m feeling and it doesn’t scare them away. I can process my ideas (even God ideas) with them. When I am in a tight spot, they have an encouraging word, a prayer, and are helping me with strategies to get out of that bind. I also do the same for them. They let me have a moment (meltdown/venting session/be emotional), when I need it, but always remind me to never stay there. They celebrate me as I do them (every chance I get). They hold me accountable. They also SUPPORT my endeavors! (That is major too!) The most important thing that I am blissfully happy about in these divine connections is fellowship. As I mentioned before, I am such a quality time person. I love spending quality time with and being in the presence of my circle of friends. There is not a day or a week (definitely never more than two or three weeks) that goes by that we haven’t checked in to have fellowship, to encourage each other, to share exciting news, etc. Before COVID, once a month some of us had pot-luck dinners together. Throughout COVID, we have had to replace the in-person sessions with virtual platforms, video conferencing, telephone calls, texts or DMs. But, we still go for broke in our fellowship and quality time. (I just had an idea as I am writing that I have to take back to my group.) Prayer Closet is set in stone every Monday night and that group of friends/prayer warriors haven’t missed a beat, as we pray for and see God perform the miracles, signs and wonders that we have requested. Since some of my friends are now in other countries, we literally schedule times for WhatsApp check ins to have our quality time together or we use social media to do a check-in. We never miss a beat! And to think that these new divine connections and friendships started as my heart’s desire put into a very specific prayer request… What friendships and divine connections are you missing out on because you haven’t asked for them? What enriching quality time and fellowship is not taking place in your life because you don’t have the right type of people in your life? Even bigger than missing out on the right type of friendships and great fellowship, what are you lacking (period) because you haven’t made your specific request known to God in prayer? Think about that. If you want to stop lacking in certain areas of your life, start asking God for the specifics of what you want and need that align with His will. Today, as we give thanks for fellowship and divine connections, I invite you to bless the organization, the Yunion (https://theyunion.org/givetothefuture/?mc_cid=d8514c1ea7&mc_eid=0ddb37d454), whose mission is to teach, train and transform boys into comprehensive men (Mighty Men of Valor) of the Most High God. They have done an incredible job keeping up their mission even during the COVID crisis by purchasing equipment that would allow them to connect with these young men through a virtual space. Love Ya, Have a Great Day of Thanks! Melissa Barber