June 17:  Christian Fellowship.

Joyfully Putting Others First.
Yes, and if I am being poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all.  For the same reason you also be glad and rejoice with me.--Philippians 2:17, 18, NKJV

GOD DOES NOT ACCEPT the most splendid service unless self is laid upon the altar, a living, consuming sacrifice.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 7, 248.

Not one nook or corner of the soul is to be a hiding place for selfishness.  God desires that heaven's plan shall be carried out, and heaven's divine order and harmony prevail, in every family, in every church, in every institution.  Did this love leaven society, we should see the outworking of noble principles of Christian refinement and courtesy, and in Christian charity toward the purchase of the blood of Christ.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8, 139.

It was to give in His own life an illustration that Jesus came in the form of humanity.  And all who accept this principle are to be workers together with Him in demonstrating it in practical life.--Education, 154.

We cannot be happy while we are wrapped up in our interest for ourselves....If we injure others, we injure ourselves also.  If we bless others, we also bless ourselves; for the influence of every good deed is reflected upon our own hearts.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 71.

In order to be happy ourselves, we must live to make others happy.  It is well for us to yield our possessions, our talents, and our affections in grateful devotion to Christ, and in that way find happiness here and immortal glory hereafter.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 3, 250.

June 16:  Christian Fellowship.

Little Things That Bring Joy.
And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.--Luke 1:58, ESV

FRIENDLY SYMPATHY and real feelings of tender interest for others would bring to your souls blessings that you have never yet experienced and would bring you into close relation to our Redeemer, whose advent to the world was for the purpose of doing good and whose life we are to copy.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 3, 526.

The love and interest of Christ's followers must be as broad as the world.  Those who live merely for "me and mine" will fail of heaven.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 3, 529.

We should have words and deeds of tender consideration for others.  We can manifest a thousand little attentions in friendly words and pleasant looks, which will be reflected upon us again.  Thoughtless Christians manifest by their neglect of others that they are not in union with Christ.  It is impossible to be in union with Christ and yet be unkind to others and forgetful of their rights.  Many long intensely for friendly sympathy.  God has given each of us an identity of our own, which cannot be merged in that of another; but our individual characteristics will be much less prominent if we are indeed Christ's and His will is ours.  Our lives should be consecrated to the good and happiness of others, as was our Saviour's.  We should be self-forgetful, ever looking out for opportunities, even in little things, to show gratitude for the favors we have received of others, and watching for opportunities to cheer others and lighten and relieve their sorrows and burdens by acts of tender kindness and little deeds of love.  These thoughtful courtesies, that, commencing in our families, extend outside the family circle, help make up the sum of life's happiness; and the neglect of these little things makes up the sum of life's bitterness and sorrow.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 3, 539.

June 15:  Christian Fellowship.

Rejoicing Together.
Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.--Romans 12:15, NKJV

GOD HAS SO CONSTITUTED US that even the strongest desire sympathy,--Gospel Workers, 209.

Men cannot love God supremely and their neighbor as themselves, and be as cold as icebergs.  Not only do they rob God of the love due Him, but they rob their neighbor as well.  Love is a plant of heavenly growth, and it must be fostered and nourished.  Affectionate hearts, truthful, loving words, will make happy families and exert an elevating influence upon all who come within the sphere of their influence.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 548.

The wonderful example of Christ, the matchless tenderness with which He entered into the feelings of others, weeping with those who wept, rejoicing with those who rejoiced, must have a deep influence upon the character of all who follow Him in sincerity.  By kindly words and acts they will try to make the path easy for weary feet....

All around us are afflicted souls.  Here and there, everywhere, we may find them.  Let us search out these suffering ones and speak a word in season to comfort their hearts.  Let us ever be channels through which shall flow the refreshing waters of compassion.--The Ministry of Healing, 157, 158.

                                          "For so the Lord has commanded us:
                                       "I have set you as a light to the Gentiles,
                                 That you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.' "
                              
                                                     --Acts 13:47, NKJV

June 14:  Christian Fellowship.

The Marks of a True Friend.
"I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan; greatly beloved were you to me; your love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women."--2 Samuel 1:26, NRSV

THE FRIENDSHIP OF JONATHAN for David was...of God's providence, to preserve the life of the future ruler of Israel.--Patriarchs and Prophets, 649.

Jonathan, by birth heir to the throne, yet knowing himself set aside by the divine decree; to his rival the most tender and faithful of friends, shielding David's life at the peril of his own; steadfast at his father's side through the dark day of his declining power, and at his side falling at the last-the name of Jonathan is treasured in heaven, and it stands on earth a witness to the existence and power of unselfish love.--Education, 157.

                                      "Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely!
                                      In life and in death they were not divided;
                                                they were swifter than eagles;
                                                they were stronger than lions.

                                         "You daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,
                                           who clothed you luxuriously in scarlet,
                                       who put ornaments of gold on your apparel.

                                                    "How the mighty have fallen
                                                       in the midst of the battle!

                                           "Jonathan lies slain on your high places.
                                         I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan;
                                                 very pleasant have you been to me;
                                                 your love to me was extraordinary,
                                                     surpassing the love of women."
                                                                                 --2 Samuel 1:26, ESV

June 13:  Christian Fellowship.

Support and Understanding.
So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and He said: "Is not Aaron the Levite your brother?  I know that he can speak well.  And look, he is also coming out to meet you.  When he sees you, he will be glad in his heart."--Exodus 4:14, NKJV

THE DESIRE FOR LOVE and sympathy is implanted in the heart by God Himself.  Christ, in His hour of agony in Gethsemane, longed for the sympathy of His disciples....Paul, though apparently indifferent to hardship and suffering, yearned for sympathy and companionship.--The Acts of the Apostles, 491.

While we should cultivate sociability, let it not be merely for amusement, but for a higher purpose.--Gospel Workers, 125.

All our associations with our fellow mortals should be with reference to their eternal interest and to our own.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, 236.

We may associate together...and do all to the glory of God....From all these pleasant associations, we want to be gathering new strength to become better men and women.  From every source possible we want to gather new courage, new strength, new power, that we may elevate our lives to purity and holiness, and not come down upon the low level of this world.--Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, 586, 587.

                   Then the Lord's anger burned against Moses and he said,
              "What about your brother, Aaron the Levite?  I know he can speak well.
                He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you."
                                                                                                --Exodus 4:14, NIV

June 12:  Christian Fellowship.

Refreshing Others Through Christ.
That I may come to you with joy by the will of God, and may be refreshed together.--Romans 15:32, NKJV

ALL WHO PROFESS to be children of God should bear in mind that as missionaries they will be brought into contact with all classes of minds.  There are the refined and the coarse, the humble and the proud, the religious and the skeptical, the educated and the ignorant, the rich and the poor.  These varied minds cannot be treated alike; yet all need kindness and sympathy.  By mutual contact our minds should receive polish and refinement.  We are dependent upon one another, closely bound together by the ties of human brotherhood.

        "Heaven forming each on other to depend,
        A master or a servant or a friend,
        Bids each on other for assistance call,
        Till one man's weakness grows the strength of all."

It is through social relations that Christianity comes in contact with the world.  Every man or woman who has received the divine illumination is to shed light on the dark pathway of those who are unacquainted with the better way.  Social power, sanctified by the Spirit of Christ, must be improved in bringing souls to the Saviour.  Christ is not to be hid away in the heart as a coveted treasure, sacred and sweet, to be enjoyed solely by the possessor.  We are to have Christ in us as a well of water, springing up into everlasting life, refreshing all who come in contact with us.--The Ministry of Healing, 495, 496.

June 11:  Christian Fellowship.

Promoting the Welfare of Others.
Therefore we have been comforted in your comfort.  And we rejoiced exceedingly more for the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all.--2 Corinthians 7:13, NKJV

THE WARMTH OF TRUE FRIENDSHIP, the love that binds heart to heart, is a foretaste of the joys of heaven.--The Ministry of Healing, 360.

Every soul is surrounded by an atmosphere of its own--an atmosphere, it may be, charged with the life-giving power of faith, courage, and hope, and sweet with the fragrance of love.  Or it may be heavy and chill with the gloom of discontent and selfishness, or poisonous with the deadly taint of cherished sin.  By the atmosphere surrounding us, every person with whom we come in contact is consciously or unconsciously affected.--Christ's Object Lessons, 339.

The life of Christ was an ever-widening, shoreless influence, an influence that bound Him to God and to the whole human family.  Through Christ, God has invested man with an influence that makes it impossible for him to live to himself.  Individually we are connected with our fellow men, a part of God's great whole, and we stand under mutual obligations.  No man can be independent of his fellow men; for the well-being of each affects others.  It is God's purpose that each shall feel himself necessary to others' welfare, and seek to promote their happiness.--Christ's Object Lessons, 339.

                             We have been greatly encouraged by this.
                In addition to our own encouragement, we were especially delighted
                             to see how happy Titus was about the way
                      all of you welcomed him and set his mind at ease.
                                                                             --2 Corinthians 7:13, NLT

June 10:  Christian Fellowship.

Confidence and Unity.
Therefore I rejoice that I have confidence in you in everything.--2 Corinthians 7:16, NKJV

WHEN MEN WILL SHOW confidence in their fellowmen they will come much nearer to possessing the mind of Christ....

...Jesus found access to minds by the pathway of their most familiar associates....

Jesus assumed humanity that He might meet humanity.  He brings men under the transforming power of truth by meeting them where they are.  He gains access to the heart by securing sympathy and confidence, making all feel that His identification with their nature and interest is complete.--Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 189, 190.

Let us cherish a spirit of confidence in the wisdom of our brethren....Connected with the service of God, we must individually realize that we are parts of a great whole....

Workers for Christ are to strive for unity.  We are the children of the same family, and have one heavenly Father.  Let us not put on garments of heaviness, and cherish doubts and a lack of confidence in our brethren.  We should not hurt our souls by gathering the thistles and the thorns, but instead we should gather the roses and the lilies and the pinks, and express their fragrance in our words and acts.--Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 500, 502.

When there is harmonious action among the individual members of the church, when there is love and confidence manifested by brother to brother, there will be proportionate force and power in our work for the salvation of men.--Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, 188.

                        I do not say this to condemn you; I have said before
                 that you have such a place in our hearts that we would live or die with you.
                       I have spoken to you with great frankness; I take great pride in you.
                  I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds....
                         ....I am glad I can have complete confidence in you.
                              
                                                     --2 Corinthians 7:3, 4, 16, NIV

June 9:  Christian Fellowship.

Shared Happiness.
"And you rejoice in your feast, and you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant and the Levite, the stranger and the fatherless and the widow, who are within your gates."--Deuteronomy 16:14, NKJV

THE ISRAELITES, in all their festivities, included the poor, the stranger, and the Levite, who was both the assistant of the priest in the sanctuary, and a religious teacher and missionary.  These were regarded as the guests of the people, to share their hospitality on all occasions of social and religious rejoicing, and to be tenderly cared for in sickness or in need.  It is such as these whom we should make welcome to our homes.  How much such a welcome might do to cheer and encourage the missionary nurse or the teacher, the care-burdened, hard-working mother, or the feeble and aged, so often without a home, and struggling with poverty and many discouragements....

...The warmth of a genial welcome, a place at your fireside, a seat at your home table, the privilege of sharing the blessing of the hour of prayer, would to many of these be like a glimpse of heaven.

Our sympathies are to overflow the boundaries of self and the enclosure of family walls.  There are precious opportunities for those who will make their homes a blessing to others....

...If we would show an interest in the youth, invite them to our homes, and surround them with cheering, helpful influences, there are many who would gladly turn their steps into the upward path.--The Ministry of Healing, 352, 354.

                                       Keep loving each other as brothers and sisters.
                                          Don't forget to show hospitality to strangers,
                             for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!
                              
                                                                            --Hebrews 13:1-2, NLT

June 8:  Christian Fellowship.

Wonderful and Pleasant Heavenly Harmony.
How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony!--Psalm 133:1, NLY

THERE ARE MYSTERIOUS LINKS that bind souls together, so that the heart of one answers to the heart of another.  One catches the ideas, the sentiments, the spirit, of another.  This association may be a blessing or a curse.--Messages to Young People, 411.

Christian sociability is altogether too little cultivated by God's people....

....Those who shut themselves up within themselves, who are unwilling to be drawn upon to bless others by friendly associations, lose many blessings; for by mutual contact minds receive polish and refinement; by social intercourse acquaintances are formed and friendships contracted which result in a unity of heart and an atmosphere of love which is pleasing in the sight of heaven.--Messages to Young People, 405.

                      Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
                         For brethren to dwell together in unity!
                        It is like the precious oil upon the head,
                               Running down on the beard,
                                       The beard of Aaron,
                         Running down on the edge of his garments.
                                   It is like the dew of Hermon,
                            Descending upon the mountains of Zion;
                       For there the Lord commanded the blessing--
                                            Life forevermore.
                              
                                                   --Psalm 133:1-3, NKJV