Have you ever wondered what your life would look like without your ‘people’? You know, the friends and family that support you, love you and keep you going. We are created for community and we have those people or need those people for a reason.
There are many verses in the Bible that talk about what it looks like to have others in deep community with us:
Hebrews 10:24- 25
24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Galatians 6:2
2 Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
9 Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. 10 For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! 11 Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? 12 And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
1 Corinthians 12:25-27
25 that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. 27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
Proverbs 27:17
17 Iron sharpens iron,
and one man sharpens another.
I have seen these scriptures play out in my life. Over the last 32 years, I have had some really close friends. These women have supported my interests, pushed me to keep trying, and thankfully been there when I needed someone to lean on. That is what I have come to see as community. I can confidently say that God has used all of them to grow my faith and draw me closer to Him.
But what does it look like to have friends and keep friends for years? What does it feel like to have friends you trust? Where you can be honest and real? How do we know who/how to trust when we have been hurt before? These are all good questions, and all worth asking.
So what does this look like? It looks like not doing life alone. It looks like trusting even when you are afraid. It looks like sharing weakness, when you want to display strength. It takes time. This doesn’t happen overnight. And our feelings about this slowly change. At first it sounds horrible and feels like it and still, God shows up. He works and one day we realize that we can’t do life without our friends.
The biggest struggle I am having in the area of community right now is time. Life is busy and full with a husband, two children, work and the commitments I have made. So I am working to prioritize time with the women in my life that want to live out scripture with me. The ones who want to encourage, sharpen one another, bear each others burdens and work together to point each other to Christ.
What is your first step? What is keeping you from deep relationship with others? If it’s fear, finding one person who you can trust is a great start. If it’s time, what could be more important than finding time to share who you are, so you can see more of Jesus? If it’s commitments, where can you say ‘no’ so that you are able to say ‘yes’?
A great place to begin this journey of deeper relationship is at a women’s retreat. God willing, we will be having our 2nd annual beach retreat this October. It is a fantastic place to meet women and begin prioritizing time or finding safe people. We want this retreat to be just that, a retreat; a place to step away from the busyness of life, enjoy some rest and relaxation and to be fed. We also hope that this time encourages you and draws you into relationship with other women so that you can draw life from the body of Christ.
In Him,
Cara