“Hello? It’s me.”

The Power of Community

A couple of years ago I experienced one of the hardest and most difficult breakups I have ever been through, I lost a friendship. Friendships aren’t typically the type of relationship you associate with a breakup but those that have “broken up” with a friend can understand that the pain of losing that person can be just as bad as an actual romantic breakup. How you ask? When you breakup with your boyfriend, who do you call and talk to? Who helps cheer you up after a fight with your parents? Who can you count on in your most desperate hours?

In Psalms 55, David talks about the anger that a betrayal by a friend left in his heart and how deep it hurt. When you lose that person from your life you feel lost afterwards, and that’s where I found myself. I wallowed in my own isolation for awhile. My other friends were there for me but most of them lived in different states by then or had their own busy lives, leading me to realize that I had no community. 

I am an introvert by nature so reaching out to others and keeping in touch has never been my forte. Given the choice, I’d rather stay home by myself than wear myself out with social interaction. But this was a problem, because when my best friend left my life I felt empty and alone.

That’s when God placed a word in my heart, Community. I’ve grown up in the Indian church all my life but it was really the thought of community that explained why the Indian church still exists.

Humans naturally seek community with like-minded people, which is why people feel more comfortable with others of their same ethnicity. Community gives support through good and bad times; this is evidenced in Acts 11:27-30 when everyone comes together in order to survive a famine sweeping the Roman Empire. John 17:21-23 also shows where Jesus calls for the unification of all believers. But what’s the difference between Community and Unity? Unity means to be one with each other, but community is acting as one towards a similar objective. You can have unity with your non-believer friends but you’ll only have true community with fellow believers.

As believers, our purpose with community is to carry out the Great Commission. Matthew 28:19, John 20:21, and Acts 10:42 all instruct us on what we are to do with the knowledge of the Gospel. Second Corinthians calls us to be “ambassadors for Christ”, “looking out for one another” (Phil 2:4), “serving one another” (Gal 5:13-14), for the “edification of the church” (1 Cor 14:26). 

This purpose behind community we’ve been entrusted with has the ability to be accomplished through proper communication. Paul instructs us to ‘give no offense’ to others and to empathize with them, (I Corinthians 9:20; 10:32). Ephesians 4:29 teaches us to only speak if it will be helpful in building others up. None of us are unworthy or unsuited for this calling, we are all “co-workers in God’s service” (I Cor 3:5-7).

WHAT you communicate and HOW you communicate it can make or break your Unity with a fellow believer.

My relationship with my friend ended after a big fight, and that’s such an underrated way of saying it (like she almost threw a punch at me y’all). She said a lot of hurtful things that I couldn’t forgive until later on. She wasn’t the community I needed or wanted, so I did something about it. I started seeking it in small groups, coworkers, and by joining this cool women’s organization with strong, spiritual women (aka WOW).

Ironically, I think our nation as a whole is currently struggling with a lack of community right now. With social distancing effecting everyone and everything, a lot of people are having trouble adjusting to our new economic and social climate. But this is a moment in history where we as Christians can communicate with others louder than ever, whether it be to encourage and reach out to people to make them feel at ease (through the phone of course), to running to the grocery store for your elderly neighbor. These small acts can show the love of Christ to others. There’s so much you can still do to build and maintain that sense of community you seek.

Remember, we can’t have community without unity. Paul often describes the church as many body parts working together and there’s unity within the church. I Cor 12:13, 18; Eph 2:19-22; 4:16. In the midst of this global pandemic, these verses are lessons we can implement now more than ever. Coming together is necessary. Even though we must temporarily isolate ourselves physically, don’t let that lead you to isolate yourself mentally. We at WOW don’t want you to feel friendless during this time because the fact of the matter is that you’re not alone.

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