Welcome to the Victory Blog

We have a responsibility to make a difference in our community. In order to do that, we have to get connected. Whenever the church gets connected, there is tremendous power. However, as individuals and as churches, we tend to be very independent, and this depletes the power of the gospel in our communities and in our own lives. But, when we come together in agreement, even two or three of us, there’s great power – God shows up.

At Pentecost, when all the believers where together in unity, the Holy Spirit fell in great power. Thousands were added to their number; many signs, wonders and miracles happened and they shared all things together. As they began connecting with one another, more and more people were getting saved and joining them every day.

Unfortunately, there is such a spirit of antichrist at work in our culture today that at the end of each day, the last thing we want to do is connect with others. We come home, close the garage door, don’t answer the phone and either watch TV or get on the internet, and never connect with other humans.

But God created us with a need for connectedness, a need for fellowship – a soul to soul connection with people that’s so strong and so committed that God’s anointing comes down on it. This goes much deeper than just sitting down together with a cup of coffee. God is moving us into a deeper kind of relationship with others. And, because I’ve found that a lot of people don’t know how to fellowship in the context of the local church, I’d like to talk about the process.

The first step is membership – committing to a local body of believers. This isn’t like joining a club or fraternity, but it is choosing to belong to something, joining, becoming a part of a body. We cannot connect with a body that we’re not a  member of. And, if we’re not connected, how can we share the sufferings of others, lift one another up, encourage one another, etc?

The second level of fellowship is friendship – learning how to share our lives with other people. This cannot happen in the large gathering, but it can in a small group setting. That’s why V•Groups are so important. The most important meeting that we have as a church is not on Saturday nights or Sunday mornings; it’s during the week in V•Groups. If you don’t have time for a small group, you’re too busy. And, you’re missing out on the power God has for you.

The third level is partnership – doing my part. This church does not exist for people to just sit there and watch. We all have to do our part. We would unleash amazing power if we would all work together in partnership with one another. And imagine how this country could be turned upside down if the churches would wake up and partner together.

The fourth level is kinship – loving people like family. We may have different skin colors, but we all have the same blood. We have to treat each other like family. Now, not everybody in a church the size of Victory is going to be close to everyone else, but each of us needs to have a group of people that are close. When things happen in life, you need to have a family around you to support you. You don’t want to go through those things alone. How do you find family in a big church like ours? Simply put, the answer is: in small groups.

God cares about every one of us, but in order to fully experience that care, we need to be connected to a small group of people around us. So, I invite you, if you are not already a member of a V•Group, join one today, at least for the next six weeks during the This Is What Community Looks Like series. Your life, and the lives of countless others, will never be the same once you begin to experience the power of connection.

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