In ancient Greece, a slave by the name of Aesop became known as a master story teller.  His fables taught moral lessons and have survived over the years.  One of them was named, "The Belly and the Members."  One day it occurred to the members of the body that they were doing all the work and the belly was getting all the food and drink.  So, they had a meeting and decided to "go on strike" against the belly.  The hands refused to take food or drink to the mouth.  The mouth was pledged to refuse it, if it did come.  The teeth had no work to do, of course.  After a few days, the hands could hardly move and the mouth was parched and dry.  The legs were finding it hard to support the body.  They discovered that even the belly in its dull, quiet way was doing necessary work for the rest of them and they must all work together or the body would go to pieces.

It's more than a moral lesson. It's biblical truth.  In the Apostle Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, chapter 12, the truth is stated that we have been spiritually gifted as individuals to bless one another.  God has created us to be a help to each other.  Paul uses the analogy of the human body to illustrate.  Our human bodies have been designed in such a way that each of the parts needs all the others working together to be healthy.

In the early 1970's, Reuben Welch wrote a book entitled, We Really Do Need Each Other.  Shortly thereafter, a little chorus was introduced that sang:  "We really do--we really do--we really do need each other."  The emphasis was LIFE TOGETHER!

WE NEED EACH OTHER BECAUSE WE ARE DIFFERENT.  We are different--and that's how it should be. In the body of Christ, the Church, we have various functions to perform and God has gifted us individually to do our part.  Diversity is essential.  The brain is not the heart, but both are necessary.  Our differences should not divide us but unite us.  "We really do need each other!"

WE NEED EACH OTHER BECAUSE WE ARE DEPENDENT.  Every so often, we come across a person who says, "I don't go to church; I don't need it.  I enjoy a private relationship with God."  Such a person is missing the truth.  We are dependent upon God, the "Head" of the Church and we are dependent upon one another, the members of "the body."  "We really do need each other!" 

The Indiana Central District of The Wesleyan Church exists, because we are interdependent.  We need men and women, the young and the old, the singers and the monotones, the rich and the poor, singles and families, newcomers and those who have been around for years.  "We really do need each other!"

"Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it (1 Cor. 12:27)"

DR. STEVEN D. EMERY

DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT

Dr. Steven D. Emery serves as District Superintendent of the Indiana Central District of The Wesleyan Church.  Before being elected as District Superintendent in 1993, he served as Senior Pastor of the Linwood Wesleyan Church in Sioux Falls, South Dakota (1985-93); Senior Pastor of Arrow Highway Wesleyan Church in Covina, California (1978-85); Pastor of Rowley Wesleyan Church in Williamston, Michigan (1973-78); and as staff pastor in Michigan and Indiana (1970-73).  He and his wife, Carol, live in Fishers, Indiana.  They have three grown children and eight grandchildren.

Dr. Steven D. Emery

District Superintendent

PO Box 7112

Fishers, Indiana 46037

office@indianacentral.org

317.774.7990