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Realizing the presence, promise, and power of the Kingdom of God.

What the Fellowship of Ailbe Members Do

This morning I prayed with two Fellowship of Ailbe (FoA) members, and our united hearts strengthened my soul during this season of change and testing. Every Christian needs others who both know one’s struggles and who will come alongside to intercede and offer encouragement.  Even more, so do spiritual shepherds of the Lord Jesus’ Church who often are reluctant to do so with others in their own congregation.  I am grateful to the Lord for these fellow pastors with whom we share a common, but relatively unknown, understanding of the spiritual legacy of fifth century Patrick.

In addition to other FoA gatherings, Jim (Maryland), John (Vermont), Jess (Washington State), and myself (Michigan) meet twice monthly by phone. I have known these brothers since our Principal, T.M. Moore, first brought us together for extended study.  Along with Chuck (Texas) who is settling into a new ministry, we five were the first class to study together Patrick’s spiritual legacy and then become covenanted members.  It was after the first year that we began meeting to pray, somewhat spontaneously.

As members of the FoA that now has added four new members, we have a covenant relationship with one another. By this I mean, we are bound by an explicit agreement, one that we individually crafted (personal rule) that is set inside a broader understanding of our Fellowship. It seems that a covenant relationship doesn’t really exist or have a real affect unless one is willing to engage another with trust and transparency. Though I believe in local church membership, this type of relationship makes a bigger difference in its affect.

Though we each have pledged to specific spiritual disciplines, as our familiarity and love has grown so now we are in early stages of becoming “soul friends.”  Soul friends develop in time as one commits to give time, even years, to cultivate.

Many pastors have close friendships that the Lord has led them into, and for myself, it wasn’t my denominational or seminary friendships alone where I found such relationships. It was in a shared vision, both for ourselves and for those whom we seek to include, tat is part of what binds us together.

These simple elements—one’s rule, gatherings, friendships, shared vision— may help you understand that the FoA isn’t mysterious, private or even ingrown. Rather, we are followers of the Lord Jesus Who has blessed His people both with a literary legacy from the ancient church giving us a pattern of community. We encourage you to talk with us if you are investigating what we are about.  My email is This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 989-705-1954.

Sam Smith

Sam's Kingdom missional focus is to provide training to evangelical leaders to see relationships covenantally and live accordingly.

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