Building A Community

Dictionary.com has 13 results for the word community. Here are a few.

1. Ecclesiastical. A group of men or women leading a common life according to a rule
2. Joint possession, enjoyment, liability.
3. Similar Character; agreement; identity

How do we make a community here in our group of college-age students at FBC? Shane Claiborne talks a lot about community in his book, and when i try to describe his ideas (or mostly realizations about the early church of Acts) i tend to butcher it and make him sound like a communist. He's not. Or maybe he is, but not the communist that most people think of. Anyway, he talks a lot about coming to the aid of one another. If, someone needs something, then everyone rises to help them. Etc. Etc.

I think that its important to do certain things together in a community. To name a few: Prayer, eat together (when you can), share possessions, and learning as a unit. The group i'm now a part of has shown me the importance of doing these things. The funny thing is, we haven't really eaten together (super bowl sorta counts) nor do we share possessions. And i think thats going to come down to us sharing homes with one another for meals. I think there is so much potential to grow as a unit around the dinner table and to discuss our personal problems with our brothers and sister. Besides, Shane says that he is very reluctant to come speak somewhere if he can't stay in someones house, and i think that is great! He wants to stay with someone and bond with them instead of being alone. Humans aren't meant to be alone.

I just want to grow into this group, and become part of it. I want for it to look on the outside and influence the world with love and for that love to be the love for Christ and the love of others as ourselves. There are people that need us! let's do something to help!