Preacher on the Run…

There were hundreds of people. A sea of faces were walking into the building and we were caught up in the flow. Strolling in beside nameless faces and bodies. To our left was a couple we had never met before. On our right was a small group of college-aged singles. As we entered the arena I observed people connecting with others they were meeting there. We on the other hand knew no one else.

This is the experience of so many in different areas of life. It could be a concert you attend or a sporting event you go to enjoy. However, there are more intimate or familiar scenes people walk into with this same feeling of being unknown. People walk in and out of their workplaces every day unknown on a personal level. Others visit the same stores and restaurants weekly, seeing the same workers and neighbors yet remaining relatively anonymous. Unfortunately, the same can be a reality in a church.

People are longing and looking for community. It is something we are wired and built for. We are not meant to do life alone. Isolation can (and is) actually kill us. And there is one entity on earth that should be radically communal. That community is the church. But finding community at church is not always easy. One reason we experience the feeling of disconnection is that our expectations of what community is (or how big it should be) are incorrect. James Emery White talks about this in his article “The Numbers Behind Community.”

Any community you are a part of may never be “one big happy family”. But if we want to not only experience community but build it and invite others into it we must do at least one thing: introduce people to one another. Be a connector. Get people talking to one another. Help others find what you have, even if you can’t be that for everyone.

As always, I’d love to hear from my readers. What did you enjoy about the article? Was there anything you disagreed with? How did it challenge you to change something in your life and actions? Don’t forget to be with the Lord’s people on the Lord’s Day…

Until Next Time…

_{Photo by Hannah Busing on Unsplash}