During Sunday morning worship services and within the weekly Your Faith Journey devotionals from the past few months, we have gone on a journey through the first seven chapters of the Acts of the Apostles. The chapters reveal Jesus’ ascension, the Holy Spirit coming upon the believers on the Day of Pentecost, and the season when Christ’s followers were being his witnesses in Jerusalem, performing miraculous signs and wonders, healing the sick and afflicted, helping one another as needed, enduring opposition from the religious leaders, all while the Holy Spirit enabled them to be “one in heart and mind.” All of this took place before persecution caused the earliest Christians and their Gospel message to spread beyond the city of Jerusalem (Acts 8:1). “In those days when the number of disciples was increasing” issues began to arise because of the differences between the treatment of Greek-speaking widows and Hebrew-speaking widows (Acts 6:1 NIV). To ensure that the needs of the widows were being met, seven men “full of the Spirit and wisdom” were chosen to be given the responsibility of overseeing their care (Acts 6:3 NIV). Because of the expansion of the leadership responsibilities beyond the twelve apostles, “the word of God spread” and “the number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly” (Acts 6:7 NIV).

 

Today, we can learn a lot from our first century sisters and brothers in Christ. In order to continue successfully spreading the Gospel and making new, maturing, and fruitful disciples of Jesus, we must share the responsibilities of the church. Thankfully, there are many leaders and members of the body of Christ who are part of Avon UMC using their time, talents, and treasures to fulfill God’s will and spread the Kingdom of God into new hearts, lives, and families. If you are one of the faithful followers of Christ helping AUMC to share the Good News about Jesus and make disciples, thank you for your help! None of us are equipped to fulfill the Great Commission on our own. We need each other!

 

For a full version of this Your Faith Journey devotional download the Worship Guide from the Avon UMC website: www.AvonUMC.com

 

The Your Faith Journey Bible verses for this week are listed below:

 

Sunday (8/9)

Today I’m going to offer God __________________________________________.

 

During the worship service God revealed _________________________________________________________________________.

 

Monday (8/10)

Read Acts 6:8-15 and pray in response to the verses.

 

*If you would like to purchase The Woodlawn Journal (devotional) that provides daily, personal devotions on the topics of unity and revival found in the ONE Small Group Study, use the link below to order it.

We’ll begin the study as part of our church-wide sermon and small group series on August 16th.

 

The Woodlawn Journal

 

If you would like to watch the Woodlawn movie before the ONE: Unity in Christ series begins next Sunday, you can rent it online through: Amazon Prime Video, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube, or Google Play

 

Tuesday (8/11)

Read Acts 7:1-22 and pray in response to what you read.

 

Wednesday (8/12)

Read Acts 7:23-44 and pray in response to what you read.

 

Thursday (8/13)

Read Acts 7:45-53 and pray in response to what you read.

 

Friday (8/14)

Read Acts 7:54-8:3 and pray in response to what you read.

 

You are invited to watch the Woodlawn: ONE episode #1 on YouTube using the link below sometime this weekend or before your group session next week. If you are not part of a small group, you could watch the episode with your spouse or a friend, then discuss the video afterwards.

 

Woodlawn: ONE episode #1 – “Who is Your Team?”

 

Saturday (8/15)

Read Acts 8:4-25 and pray in response to what you read.

 

As we conclude our journey through the first eight chapters of Acts, which focuses on the Holy Spirit working in and through the disciples in Jerusalem, consider spending some time reflecting upon our journey

this summer. What verses, stories, or chapters stood out the most to you? Why?

 

*To download the entire Worship Guide, which includes the extended version of the Your Faith Journey Guide, go to www.AvonUMC.com.