Where do you lie paralyzed? What is your mat? Fear? Pride? Anger? Pain?

Danny Quimlat, Rock Church pastor to 1825, the young adult small groups ministry, asked the Rock congregation to think about what keeps us isolated from being involved with a community within the Rock Church.

Danny preached in September (check out his sermon here) on the story of the paralytic man from the Gospel of Mark, chapter two. The man had four faithful friends who carried him on his mat to see Jesus. The crowded house where Jesus taught kept the men from entering the home in the traditional waythrough the dooryet these men stopped at nothing. From the rooftop they lowered their paralytic friend down with ropes to be healed by Jesus. The faith of these desperate friends allowed this paralytic young man to receive by the power and authority of Jesus Christ the forgiveness of sin and the ability to walk.

When we become involved in a community of Christians, we allow people to come alongside us through a difficult time, to carry us on our mat, so that eventually we can help others through their struggles.

When we become involved in a community of Christians, we allow people to come alongside us through a difficult time, to carry us on our mat, so that eventually we can help others through their struggles. God promises in 2 Corinthians 1:4 that we have a God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.

What is our mat on which we are paralyzed? Perhaps we face the fear of unemployment, the pain of abuse, or the fog of unbelief. Pastor Danny shared that for a period of time his mat of depression isolated him from others. When he humbled himself, admitting his need for help by reaching out to a group of men, he received prayer, encouragement, and accountability to get through his struggle.

God spoke to Pastor Dannys heart with Psalm 23. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, and he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his names sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.

Danny realized Jesus not only sits at the right hand of God in heaven, but He is with us in our darkest hour, in our valley. We are not alone. Jesus is by our side. We must allow the body of Christ, the church, to come alongside us to experience the love of Jesus through His people.

What is your mat? Do you need the support of a community to help you through a difficult time? Or maybe Jesus has brought you through a struggle where you can be that person that comes alongside someone who is hurting.

This is the time to get off your mat, to get involved in a community of Christians, to do life together. One way to do it is to check out the Rock Church website, where you can find upcoming events, and can view the ministries on the A.R.M.Y. page online at https://www.sdrock.com/army/.

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Kirsten Strawn is a volunteer writer with Rock the Word: The Rock Church Writers Ministry. For more of her writing, go to www.TheFaithCoach.com/.