There’s nothing like moving away from your hometown to discover the priceless gift of community as well as the many forms it takes.
Back home, I was surrounded by friends and family who’ve known me at my worst, long before “the new me” arrived on the scene. Picture me donning a perm that made the circumference of my head twice the size it should be and wearing an oversized Champion sweatshirt draping down to my thighs. Oh, those 90s were something else. It wasn’t a pretty sight, and neither was my temperament. Fast forward a decade, and things began to look a bit brighter when Jesus entered into my life and sweetened my bitter soul with His love. Yet, it’s really been over the last ten years, that He got down into the roots hidden in my heart, and began a healing process that brought about such a radical transformation.
It’s a process that most certainly needed community.
As a matter of fact, without that community of brothers and sisters in Christ, I’m certain there wouldn’t be a “new me” to testifying of God’s amazing work in my heart. Why? Because it’s the result of the dozens upon dozens of people that loved me, challenged me, encouraged me, and prayed for me at my worst as they could see God’s best for me. But don’t misunderstand — I wasn’t surrounded by perfect people and a healthy, whole, and functioning community. On the contrary, we were a stinking mess.
The decade that marked the most growth also marked the most pain.
My church felt apart, leadership and all, and most of the mess was in arm’s length of me. I knew what was happening before the news even hit the bulletin. The school community we lived in fell prey to the enemy’s antics too, with hurt and division, and tearful goodbyes. Our extended family relationships were under great strain and we had ridiculous health crisis one after another, like rare illnesses, emergency surgeries, scheduled surgery, and concussions, all on top of the normal slew of flu viruses and sinus infections.
Yet, in the middle of real life suffering, I discovered the beauty of community, both in real life and online.
It’s as though the Lord gave me eyes to see the preciousness of one conversation, one prayer message, one dinner together. I was able to recognize how years of doing life side-by-side in a Bible study really did amount to something, even if we never made it into each other’s homes. I discovered that I can have a mentor who lives a dozen states away, and one only a few blocks away, and they’ll be used by God in very different but incredibly valuable ways. I even came to see how God brings into our life people to speak life, breathe hope, or fill a vacant role, whether we stay in the same place forever or find ourselves in a brand new stomping ground.
Community is possible if we’re willing to risk our hearts to receive imperfect and unscripted love.
In all those years we lived at a boarding school, new faculty would arrive passionate about community. But the only ones that lasted beyond a year or two were those who didn’t have a preconceived notion about what it looked like.
Sometimes it’s our expectations that keep us isolated.
Friend, I am sure God has a community for you to plug into in real life and maybe even online. It may be a hodgepodge of relationships that surround you within the body of Christ. It may be one key place in which you get to plug in deep.
Community is priceless, not only when they remember who you were, but when they can celebrate with you at who God has made you become.
Where do you think God may be leading you to embrace community?
What would it look like to risk the unknown in the pursuit of relationships that will become like fuel on your journey of life transformation?
How might becoming a trained mentor give you the confidence to forge a community of sisters steeped in mentoring?
