Community Matters

W ritten by m eagan t aylor

My current phase of life has further increased my certainty in the importance of belonging to a community that follows Jesus and His teaching. I am in a phase of life where I need mental and spiritual support. It’s easy to become segmented during this busy season of looking after young kids because of the many things going on. But segmentation comes with pride, thinking we can do things on our own, an inability to learn from others and a lot of anxiety as you try to carry the load alone. It’s true when they say that ‘no man is an Island.’ We were never meant to do life alone, no matter the season we are in.

There are days when I feel overwhelmed, overburdened and in need of a ‘break.’ In these moments I am so grateful that I have people to call and tell them how I’m feeling.” People who can build me up and encourage me, people who will embrace me in my joy and in my sorrows. In good times and in bad, we pray for each other and we acknowledge our need for one another. What community does is it allows you to bring all the dark moments into the light. If we stay in darkness, we can be left feeling alone and overburdened. It’s no wonder there are so many people suffering with depression. It’s because a lot of people have nobody to talk to; nobody to listen to them. This leaves them vulnerable to the voice of the enemy. And they end up believing the lies of the enemy. God doesn’t want us to be alone.

The Bible says that God spoke to Adam in the cool of the day. God was in a habit of visiting Adam and Eve. They were in community. They would talk and enjoy the relationship of community with each other. God the Father, Jesus the Son & The Holy Spirit are a community. If God and His creation were established on community, then why do we think we should live alone? Why would we ever think we can thrive alone? That was never God’s intention for us. In Ecclesiastes 4 we are reminded that “Two are better than one… Pity anyone who

falls and has no one to help them up.” If just one person can be a source of strength, how much more strength can a larger community offer? In a book written by Francine Rivers, she describes how in Northern California there is a grove of Redwood trees that remind her of her church community. She reflects, “Though the trees tower hundreds of feet overhead, and some of these trees are so big you can link hands with ten people and still not encircle the base, these giants have a shallow root structure. But because the redwoods grow close together, the roots are interwoven, adding strength so that when the winds come and the rains pound and soak the soil, these trees stand and continue to grow – some for a thousand years.”

Isn’t that a perfect description of community? We stand together through the seasons, keeping each other accountable, encouraged and loved through every single season. Community is GOD! You cannot separate the two. We are called to be in community and even more so to invite others into community! I thank God for my community that comprises of family members, friends, my local church and CBN. I am thankful that when I feel shaken by the challenges in my life, I can rely on the other believers who are supporting me, when I stumble I am corrected and when I need encouragement I have people to point me back to Christ and embrace me in love. I can be that for others, and oh man, that makes God so happy because that’s what He created us for - community! He connects us together in love.

Thank you Jesus for the gift of community!