May is a fun month. Mother’s Day, graduations, and parent/child dedications. It is, to me, the quintessential month of family. Families gather for all these major events to celebrate life and the blessings the Lord sends our way. Some have Decoration Days at church, others schedule May weddings. This all culminates with Memorial Day and the end of school … which is the greatest celebration for children and sometimes the greatest challenge for working parents!
I love celebrating the babies, the families, the graduations, the mothers, the successes, the hopes, and the dreams of the people in our community. There are social media posts, pictures, and even yard signs proclaiming the mothers, graduates, and special events.
We were made to live in community. We thrive on relationships. When God created Adam, after giving him the opportunity to identify all the animals, Adam was lonely because there was no other being like him with which to share life. God then created Eve. Adam and Eve had children, and the story of community began. We need community.
The best form of community is one which is built around love. This type of community is commonly found within a family. We all love our families. Now, I know families can be challenging, and there is possibly that difficult relative in each family … you know the one … but we generally get along in the end because we love one another.
Immediately after May, summer is coming. In my world that means youth camp, children’s camp, and vacation Bible school. These events bring thousands of hours of work, thousands of details, and thousands of expenses. Many of our children and students attend and even assist in leading theses outreach efforts, designed to share the love of Jesus. Some children spend week after week going from VBS to VBS as a type of summer tour! These are fun days, and I have joy of seeing lives changed for the good because of the efforts of various churches working hard to accomplish their mission.
I believe the greatest expression of community of love is found in a local church. No matter your past, your fears, your shortcomings, or anything else, when you are involved in a church, you are a valued member of the community of believers in that church. In fact, the church, (meaning the people, not the building), needs you! You are uniquely made and gifted to help that church. Your uniqueness brings particular gifts, experiences, talents, and passions. You are a unique puzzle piece which is necessary to help fulfill the complete picture; the mission of the church.
A better description of a church community is a body. The church is described as having Jesus as the head of the body and each believer as a different part, with value, but different gifts.
In 1 Corinthians 12:14-19, Paul writes:
“For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be?As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. …”
In verses 24b-26, he further writes:
“… But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.”
Do you see the description of the value and necessity of each member of the body? God arranged the members as He chose, and if you are a believer, a church needs you … and you need them. Each of us needs a place where we belong and find purpose. We need community. We need a family. We need a family based upon love.
I hope you are enjoying the month of May. I hope you enjoy the summer. More importantly, I hope you are enjoying the gift of community, of belonging, of purpose through a local church. We were created for community!
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