Thoughtful About . . . Community

Last week I talked a bit about how God often speaks to me through what I call “themes”–ideas that keep coming at me over and over, from different directions. The one I focused on last week was “Being Complete.” But another topic has been popping up all around me too.

Community

It’s a word that can reach near or far, mean “close to home” or extend all around the world, right? Maybe we mean our physical neighbors–the community in which we live. But we could also mean like-minded people, wherever they are. 

There are certainly plenty of negatives with technology and media–but one thing I love about it is that it allows us to build communities with people we might never meet in person. For me, that means other writers, readers, knitters, and Christ-followers. Maybe for you, it’s gardeners, or genealogists, or tea-lovers.

Regardless of the “what”, these things we love are part of us. They’re part of who we are and what makes us tick, what drives us through each day. They’re part of our identity. And when we connect with other people who share that love, that can be powerful stuff. 

We build friendships.

We learn.

We share.

We invest part of ourselves.

We grow.

We edify others.

And sometimes this takes on a life of its own, doesn’t it? I’m occasionally shocked at the tight-knit communities that spring up around something like a TV show or comic book. These are people who are truly passionate about it–who go to conventions, buy or create costumes, post on forums, speculate, argue, cry and laugh over the latest installment. Why? Because it matters to them. And because they love communicating with other people who feel the same way.

As my husband and I work on all our different endeavors–writing and publishing, editing and designing, blogging and filming and building our companies–we realized that what we want to do isn’t just to find an audience. We want to build a community. A group of people who all partake of that common thing they love (where the word comes from). A group of people who believe in standing up and doing. Who know that stories change the world. Who want to be–and are–the hands and feet of Christ. Who want to build something for Him.

But how do we do that? Sometimes it’s pretty simple–you walk across the street with a plate of cookies or you join a group on Facebook. But sometimes it’s hard–because it doesn’t just mean speaking up, it means reaching out. A community isn’t just a bunch of people all shouting their opinions, right? It’s a group of people doing something together.

As an introvert, it’s hard for me to get outside myself sometimes. Hard for me to really feel like I’m a part of things. So these thoughts of community can be stretching. And yet, once I am a part of something, I will cling to it with loyalty and love, fighting to preserve it and build it up. Which is, I think, what the members of a community should do.

But sometimes we also have to pause and ask ourselves: which communities deserve our time? Our energy? Our money? Our attention?

I’m truly blessed to be part of some amazing communities. Readers. Writers. Believers. And I pray that, even though we’re a community spread all around the world, we can be one that builds each other up. That edifies. That teaches. That shares. That serves. Each other, but also the world around each of us.

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