REFLECTION ON CONNECTIONS

A COVID-19-INSPIRED REFLECTION ON CONNECTIONS

NEVILLE BARTLEY | Youth Team Leader, SUNZ

Believer and non-believer alike have had so many questions about the COVID-19 pandemic: Why? When will it stop? Will I be safe? What will the world be like when it’s over? We’ve been used to having a world focused on self—my needs, desires, time—with the freedom to go where we wanted, to meet with whom we wanted, to go to church. All of a sudden our freedom was gone; we were locked down in a bubble, with no physical church meetings. The reality of lockdown shone a light on life and revealed a lot of cracks. Acts 2 shows us we are supposed to be there for others, to love them, have time for them, and care about them. Many of us now realise we haven’t been. Some realised their connections were only on a superficial ‘what can I get out of this?’ level. Families who thought they were close discovered that relationships were really very shallow. We were designed to be connected with one another and with God. Now our churches couldn’t meet and some were demanding their rights to gather and claiming persecution. SUNZ is hearing a lot of discussion about ‘what is church?’ Churches are asking if people will return. Gathering online has challenged us to stop and ask ‘do I want to gather?’ and ‘why?’. Some churches realised during the lockdown that large portions of their communities did not have access to technology and it has forced them to be creative. What have we learnt to take forward? I’ve heard lots of families saying they don’t want to lose what they have developed over lockdown. We have learnt that we can’t survive on our own, that we do need others—not only to receive from but also to actually give to. What about church? Is it just a gathering once a week to sing and listen to someone speak, have a coffee and a quick chat? I hope and pray we have discovered it is much more than that. The way ahead is not to shift everything online or to just go back to what we did before. We believe this is a wonderful time for the church to stop, reflect and pray—involving

youth and children in the dialogue and truly listening. The answer is to be connected with one another and with God and allow that connection to shape our community. Let’s make our church a place of daily connection, not just an occasional touchpoint. Here are a few ideas to start being better connected with others and God. But don’t stop here!

Connecting as Families

¼ Connect with one another during the day: a text; a smiley face or a heart; few words like ‘thinking of you’ only take a moment. ‘I don’t have time’ is just an excuse for ‘I don’t really want to’.

¼ Diary in one-on-one and group times.

Then, if someone else asks if you are available you can truthfully say that you are not. Let different members of your family choose the activities you do together. Mix it up and have fun. Make these times a priority, not a burden.

"AND ALL THE BELIEVERS LIVED IN A WONDERFUL HARMONY, HOLDING EVERYTHING IN COMMON”

ACTS 2:44 (THE MESSAGE)

¼ Stop and physically face people who are talking to you so they know you are engaged.

¼ Do faith together. Pray, read and talk about scripture, get involved in ageappropriate ministry together.

SPRINGSPRING SPRING SPRING SPRINGSPRING SPRINGSPRING SPRINGSPRING Connecting as Church ¼ Connect with maybe six or seven people on a deeper level to encourage your faith. Maybe message each day to check how they are or ask for prayer needs. ¼ Choose someone to help you connect with scripture each day. Share your thoughts, challenges, and things you didn’t understand. ¼ Grab a coffee or lunch or have fun together once or twice a month with some of these people, just to build relationship. ¼ If you have children, connect with other families with similar age children to have fun and journey life together. Connecting with God ¼ Pray each day. Use different prayer methods, alone and with others, and learn to listen for God: it is actually more important than talking at God. ¼ Connect with scripture daily. Read, or listen or watch scripture, alone and with others—mix it up a bit, but make it happen. ¼ Be thankful daily for all that you have and tell God how thankful you are. ¼ Be real. Whatever you are going through, share honestly with God. ¼ Look for God in everyday life and be surprised. ¼ Scripture continues to remind me how much I am loved by God and how God expects me to love those around me the same way. So, whatever you are doing to build connections, be intentional, be open and honest and do it with love. And please have fun. www.sunz.org.nz6