Hijacking Fellowship

I'm not sure who had the word "fellowship" first, the church or the world. Since the New Testament era it's been chiefly associated with the church, but the world likes the word, too. For instance, the folks at work are advertising an office-wide lunch as an opportunity for "fellowship".

This weekend I saw clearly the difference between what the world calls fellowship (i.e. socialization) and the church's meaning.

On Saturday we hosted a dinner for several friends we knew in college. It was good to catch up after 10 years of going separate ways; but it wasn't a fulfulling time. Our worldviews and values are so different. God-centered conversation would have been unwelcome and foreign to them.

Contrast that to today. After church we were invited for lunch with a like-minded Christian family. The conversation flowed naturally and consisted of a mutual delight in God and the life in Christ.

I'm thankful that the world's empty fellowship isn't all there is.