Community Connectedness

I have recently had some significant conversations with people in every age grouping who have one surprising thing in common. You won't be surprised at what it is but you may be surprised that others feel the same way you do. The issue? Loneliness. A feeling of being disconnected. Spending lots of time with people but not getting where we need to be relationally. Not experiencing depth in relationships. Nobody willing to be vulnerable and take time to love people because they have been burned so much in the past. They want to love people but they always have their guard up. We try to protect ourselves from being hurt. But if we want to connect we have no other choice but to take the risk of being hurt. C.S. Lewis said the only place you can be free of all the pain and problems of love is hell.

You must also deal with the perception that no one can 'break in' to the inner circle in churches. We feel as if everyone else has been invited to this wonderful party and we are the only one left out in the cold watching them enjoy themselves inside. But I am coming to believe that the party just doesn't exist. We are needy people who have a God-given hunger for significant human relationships. We all, even the most anti-social among us, have this need. So there is this artificial inner circle, a false perception that we blame for the painful reality of unmet relational expectations. When you have long-timers at churches saying they feel lonely the perception fades. People who have known each other for years and it is perceived they are tight and won't let anyone in, but they are lonely too. Maybe once they connected well, but you cannot ride the wave of the past. Friendships grow cold and distant without continual interaction. And life in the body of Christ is not lived to it's fullest unless we are sharing our lives together. 1 Thessalonians 2:7-8 teaches us that the gospel and our lives must be continually shared. What better place to live out the gospel than with sinful humans; where there is ample opportunity to apply the truth of the gospel?

My prayer is that every believer would be a friend and have a friend; that every person would risk the pain of rejection and hurt and dig deeply in relationship. When we see how lonely people really are, how even really busy people feel left out, we can get to work and go about the business of connecting; trusting God and wading into the waters of messy life with brothers and sisters in Christ.

Why do we exist? To worship God through the gospel, build up believers in the gospel, and reach the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
One flows out of the other. If we get bogged down in the middle, both ends of the spectrum will be hindered. If your sibling was in need what would you do? If it was a family member what would you do? You would drop everything to meet the need. Guess what? Take a look
around next Sunday in church - this is your family. Decide to take the risk and love your brothers and sisters in Christ.

Everyone feels like a little kid in a brand new classroom and neighborhood. They need a friend. Core issue: Our worship suffers if we are not
a family celebrating how much God has done for us and what He is doing in and among us. Our common life would be vibrant and alive if
we do. And we will not be able to help ourselves as we enthusiastically tell others of the gospel of the grace of God in Christ.