So, I wanted to start with something close to my heart. Pursuing and doing community well. I have lived in several different cities and towns across the UK and had to learn to leave and cleave, build and rebuild community in each of the different areas.
Community is such a key part of life but takes time and intention to cultivate well.
Within community, we often find we have different groups of people for different seasons or purposes. We see this in the life of Jesus - he had his twelve disciples who he did life with; he encouraged and challenged them, preparing each of them for their future in establishing and growing the church. Within that 12, he choose to spend time with 3 of them, Peter (strong headed and fiery) being one of them. This would have changed dynamics and the relationships between those 4 men. And further still, Jesus also valued time (and community) on his own with his heavenly Father. He was intentional with people but also served people from a place of rest, choosing to carve out time on his own with God. He served the need around him out of this place of intimacy with God.
Jesus also interacted and engaged with people beyond the 12. He regularly addressed crowds of people. He spoke to and touched the lives of the people he encountered and met. He broke down cultural barriers and challenged societal norms, seeking to bring the kingdom of God into their situations.
Jesus also interacted and engaged with people beyond the 12. He regularly addressed crowds of people. He spoke to and touched the lives of the people he encountered and met. He broke down cultural barriers and challenged societal norms, seeking to bring the kingdom of God into their situations.
As Christians, Jesus is our role model and there is lots we can learn from his relationships and encounters with people and how he sought to build community.
1. There is value in being content on your own.
This something I have had to grapple with over the years. I am naturally extroverted and love spending time with people. But I have learnt that if I fill my time with people, I end up running on empty, not being able to fully enjoy those times. I now value and even seek out time on my own to just be and also time on my own with Jesus. I have been hearing God more clearly when I have been hanging out with people because I have taken that time out to be alone with Jesus to discern and recognise his voice.
We can form better relationships and establish a better community when we ourselves feel refreshed and at rest. How good are you at spending time on your own?
If you are more introverted, being on your own will come more easily to you. But there is still a challenge there for you. I spoke to an introvert recently who loves people and does community well, but they have to be really careful that they don't over-commit, otherwise they really struggle in social situations. This person was honest with others in her community and explained this to people to help them understand how she works as an introvert, but also to honour and value the people in her community she was investing in. So if you are introverted, what does doing community well look like for you? Are you choosing to spend time with people even when you'd rather be on your own? Be encouraged community needs introverts as much as it needs extroverts. We both have lots to learn from each other.
I would love to explore the Extroverted/Introverted theme in another blog post.
2. We can go deep with a few but still have a broader network.
Jesus did it so should we. It is often tempting to feel like you have to include everyone in everything but the reality is that just doesn't work. There is definitely a place for reflecting and ensuring our communities are inclusive and that people do have a core within the broader community. However, I think a few key people to journey life with are key to a successful and flourishing walk with Jesus. It is also important that some of these people are local to you - people who can see you doing life day in day out. These friendships will shift and change and it might be that one person is for that specific season or place and when that ends, so does the friendship naturally shift. It is okay to have different friendships with different people and we need to live in the freedom of this.
3. It is important to meet people where they are at.
I love the story of Jesus with the woman at the well (John 4). He meets her in her mess and sin and as he engages in conversation, he reveals who he is and she invites God into her life. We can do the same with those we encounter. Listening first often provides opportunities later to share our faith with people.
4. Heavenly Father needs to be at the centre of our community and as we do this we reflect him to the world around us.
Society as a whole is desperate for love and community. So much so that some atheists have started creating atheist church (church without Jesus - they sing Queen songs instead of worship. I kid you not!) as they recognise the benefit community brings to people and their wellbeing. But we need to be distinctive in how we do community. The early church did this well where they shared possessions and ensured no one went without. This is also referred to in Leviticus with the year of Jubilee. If you want to explore this more, I would recommend a book called The Jubilee Gospel by Kim Tan. God gave the Israelites clear laws to protect the poor and the vulnerable of that society. What does this look like for you in your immediate community, but also the wider church community?
The challenge for us in our current society is being different. How can we ensure that our community has Jesus as the centre? How can we ensure there are opportunities for people to encounter him more as a result of being part of, or even visiting, our community?
I hope that has given you some food for thought. Please do comment below with any feedback or questions.
Callie Rose
This something I have had to grapple with over the years. I am naturally extroverted and love spending time with people. But I have learnt that if I fill my time with people, I end up running on empty, not being able to fully enjoy those times. I now value and even seek out time on my own to just be and also time on my own with Jesus. I have been hearing God more clearly when I have been hanging out with people because I have taken that time out to be alone with Jesus to discern and recognise his voice.
We can form better relationships and establish a better community when we ourselves feel refreshed and at rest. How good are you at spending time on your own?
If you are more introverted, being on your own will come more easily to you. But there is still a challenge there for you. I spoke to an introvert recently who loves people and does community well, but they have to be really careful that they don't over-commit, otherwise they really struggle in social situations. This person was honest with others in her community and explained this to people to help them understand how she works as an introvert, but also to honour and value the people in her community she was investing in. So if you are introverted, what does doing community well look like for you? Are you choosing to spend time with people even when you'd rather be on your own? Be encouraged community needs introverts as much as it needs extroverts. We both have lots to learn from each other.
I would love to explore the Extroverted/Introverted theme in another blog post.
2. We can go deep with a few but still have a broader network.
Jesus did it so should we. It is often tempting to feel like you have to include everyone in everything but the reality is that just doesn't work. There is definitely a place for reflecting and ensuring our communities are inclusive and that people do have a core within the broader community. However, I think a few key people to journey life with are key to a successful and flourishing walk with Jesus. It is also important that some of these people are local to you - people who can see you doing life day in day out. These friendships will shift and change and it might be that one person is for that specific season or place and when that ends, so does the friendship naturally shift. It is okay to have different friendships with different people and we need to live in the freedom of this.
3. It is important to meet people where they are at.
I love the story of Jesus with the woman at the well (John 4). He meets her in her mess and sin and as he engages in conversation, he reveals who he is and she invites God into her life. We can do the same with those we encounter. Listening first often provides opportunities later to share our faith with people.
4. Heavenly Father needs to be at the centre of our community and as we do this we reflect him to the world around us.
Society as a whole is desperate for love and community. So much so that some atheists have started creating atheist church (church without Jesus - they sing Queen songs instead of worship. I kid you not!) as they recognise the benefit community brings to people and their wellbeing. But we need to be distinctive in how we do community. The early church did this well where they shared possessions and ensured no one went without. This is also referred to in Leviticus with the year of Jubilee. If you want to explore this more, I would recommend a book called The Jubilee Gospel by Kim Tan. God gave the Israelites clear laws to protect the poor and the vulnerable of that society. What does this look like for you in your immediate community, but also the wider church community?
The challenge for us in our current society is being different. How can we ensure that our community has Jesus as the centre? How can we ensure there are opportunities for people to encounter him more as a result of being part of, or even visiting, our community?
I hope that has given you some food for thought. Please do comment below with any feedback or questions.
Callie Rose
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