FAITH
Commissioned to Community
By Sarah Smith
Sarah Smith is a former long-term CAP volunteer and current employee who recently shared these words of encouragement with incoming volunteers at the fall commissioning service.
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oinonia. The Greek word that the MerriamWebster dictionary defines as “the Christian fellowship or body of believers, and an intimate spiritual communion and participative sharing in a common religious commitment and spiritual community.” Intimate spiritual communion. Community. Christian Appalachian Project (CAP) community is where I broke out of my shell and became my truest, best self. It required intentionality, communication, patience, love, and vulnerability, but these personal investments created memories that will last a lifetime. When I originally came to CAP as a volunteer in August of 2011, I wasn’t yet aware of the impact this decision would have on my life. My first couple weeks, I tried to balance Skyping with friends and family back home with getting to know my fellow volunteers. I wasn’t quite ready to leap out of my comfort zone and fully invest in this new community. Then everything clicked for me at volunteer orientation. I got to know some of my housemates better, as well as volunteers who lived in other houses. I realized that this place was full of amazing people and I wanted to get to know as many of them as I could. It was at this time of orientation that I decided to completely embrace the entire experience. I lived in three different Jackson House communities,
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THE MOUNTAIN SPIRIT | FALL/WINTER 2015
give or take a few short-termers throughout. Transitioning between communities took time and patience, as well as a willingness to start fresh each time. There are several lessons I learned in my first volunteer community that helped me in my second and third — most importantly, to be open and vulnerable, which takes time. After a few months, I started to notice that we connected well in small groups but weren’t necessarily meshing well as a whole. During a muchneeded devotion that focused on each individual and how we were doing, we had the opportunity to share how our CAP volunteering experience was going so far. We shared both our struggles and successes with one another. It was a chance for us meet one another where we were, in all our vulnerability. Understanding that some were struggling allowed others to offer encouragement and a listening ear. This was a great lesson for me in communication. It was an opportunity to share of ourselves in a caring and respectful environment. Community requires open, honest communication. Communication is rarely without its share of conflict. Life in community sometimes comes with a side of minor annoyances, hurts, and disagreements. Some conflicts need to be graciously addressed and others are an opportunity for personal growth, which requires a certain level of discernment. Time in community goes by much too quickly to let a simple annoyance or hurt fester. Community requires communication, but it also requires love. Living in intentional community, I was constantly
