Faith and Fellowship
What’s the best way to create a healthy church community? By Rachel Ashworth
Many Christians grow up in the same church from childhood to maturity and beyond. Having a “home church” can be great for a child, offering a place to return to as an adult and a place to call home when school, work, or their own family is unfriendly and maybe even ungodly. As a young adult of 33 years I’ve had the great opportunity to land my church membership in many congregations both small and large—all of which have been different. What I’ve noticed, looking back, is that those churches that fellowshipped together are the ones that had the most impact on me spiritually, socially and interpersonally. This makes sense to me because our relationship with others models a relationship
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with Christ and is a direct result of God’s need for relationships among us. We were created for this purpose! Fellowshipping together and with God is very important for Christians. It was for the new-church apostles (Acts 2:42), and it remains so in God’s church today.
company with others in our church? Are they our friends? Do we share interests, activities, feelings and experiences—or do we hide our true interests, our past, our feelings? Are we maintaining equality in our fellowship? It seems fellowship is more complicated than planning a potluck.
with a potluck style picnic in mind. I made my first friends that day and our time living there was filled with events just like it. Some things were planned weeks in advance like Wyoming Winter Retreat and the annual barbecue and hayride at Mills Spring Ranch. Other things, like sledding parties and game nights, were Everyone’s a friend Fellowship defined thrown together on a Sabbath When we arrived in Casper, afternoon. You never knew Modern churches tend Wyoming, in the summer of what to expect or who would to define fellowship in one 2013, my husband and I were be attending, but it was always way: whatever happens in the utterly alone. We were broke, a great time and always rooted fellowship hall! Potlucks, baby we had no friends, and we had in friendly fellowship. showers, wedding receptions, never been to a church with mid-week prayer meetings, and We moved away from youth groups. So if your church more than 10 pews. We were Casper about three years later, spiritually floundering when doesn’t have a fellowship hall, but a friend tells me their we made the 1,200-mile drive, annual events are still going does fellowship happen? and God knew exactly what The Merriam-Webster strong. Some programs have we needed when we arrived. Dictionary defines fellowship gone by the wayside and new as many things, including Within a few days of our ones have begun and grown companionship, company, and first Sabbath at the Casper into something beautiful, community of interest, activAdventist Church, I was forging bonds between ity, feeling, or experience. invited to meet with another members, reaching out to the Based on these definimom at a local park for an community, and even forming tions, are our churches truly afternoon picnic. When I mentorships among generfellowshipping together? Are arrived she was there early ations. The youth are menwe keeping companionable with about 10 other people, all tored through boys and girls
