Below you will find a few of the many testimonies that we have received in January and February 2021 about how the Lord uses Inspire fellowship bands to transform people’s daily lives as missional disciples who abide more deeply with God.
Sandra was already a part of a fellowship band so she decided to participate in the Introduction to Fellowship Bands online course whilst she was in lockdown in England during the pandemic. She wanted to learn more and seek an even deeper experience of fellowship. And she wasn’t disappointed:
Being in an Inspire fellowship band has helped me to recognise where God IS or HAS been in my daily life. How God brings people into my day that I need to hear from or who need my help through the Holy Spirit working in me.
During the first lockdown in the UK last spring and summer, I spent many hours sitting in the garden and watching nature and listening to creation. As I watched for eg rhubarb sprouting from the soil I felt an awareness grow inside me of me being harshly pruned back over recent months in order to grow anew with stronger roots and better fruit.
My Inspire fellowship band has given me the opportunity to sit and share spiritual conversations with Jesus sitting amongst us steering and leading us. As trust grows so does confidence to voice our innermost feelings and thoughts. Even our failures! As we recognise if we have let self overtake the Holy Spirit in our life and by being able to voice this we find we receive words of wisdom that reassure us. during fellowship band That we recognise that The Enemy tries every which way to make us stop or fail and for us to say” Get off my shoulder Satan, don’t take away my joy!” Has become a fellowship band statement! It took 15 months from my invitation to join a fellowship band to actually being in it! What a blessing though to have found this group situation to fire my daily walk with God and to water me so I am growing stronger in the Holy Spirit.
During the 5 weeks of this course I have faced “ups and downs.” A battle with technology making me think I should quit BUT I persevered, was determined not to be beaten with God’s help. This came in abundance from leaders on the course. I am so grateful, alleluia! What HAS become apparent IS that God IS speaking Inspire’s Fellowship Band message to our newly formed Methodist Circuit and minister at our church! The last 2 evening services have preached about us all being Missionary Disciples. About :“ Decrease self Increase Holy Spirit.” Our minister’s closing prayer last Sunday: “ Lord equip us & prepare usMake us bold & courageous In Jesus’s name, Amen. I feel God IS moving through the earth, our church and new circuit.”
Thank you all for being part of my online course. It’s been wonderful to meet you and may God use us all fruitfully, Amen.
I do feel that the Fellowship we share in Band is true Christian fellowship and there are very few places to be able to spiritually share, grow and encourage each other. It is life giving and life changing. May the Lord continue to equip us and prepare us to be bold and courageous….whatever He reveals that will look like!
Being in close and authentic Christian fellowship is life-changing.
I am praying for hungry people who want honest, deep, “embodied” fellowship–people who want to move from believer to follower.
Wesley had a warning not to satisfy the hunger for God with religion — that’s what can happen when we use the word “fellowship” to mean anything we want it to mean, whether Jesus is involved or not.
I like that Jesus made his Disciples reflect too…..he didn’t give them all the answers but in the questions he asked, allowed them to reflect and seek answers for themselves. This too is at the heart of Band. We are not there to solve but lead and encourage each other in love to reflect with God who has the answers!
I have become more and more aware of God speaking to me since joining my band. He definitely takes over my pen when I am writing in my journal preparing to lead a group or reflecting on where I have seen or felt God each day.
The phrase which kept coming into my mind during our band discussion was an invitation from God to us to just step into the ‘Niagara of God’s grace’.
Band is a place of mutual fellowship where Jesus is the leader and the Holy Spirit is our guide.
Band is a remembrance that we got into the ministry to share Jesus.
Band is where where learn to listen to God through people who are together to share life. Accountability is easier than I thought because in fellowship band it is not a place of judgement, it is where we friends who share life, strengths and weaknesses. It has changed my life to part of a fellowship band.
Holiness is not something you can achieve on your own. Fellowship band is essential
