Day 8 | Contagious Community

When I started to write about community this week, my mind was overwhelmed with thoughts. There is so much I could write on this topic. Community is deeply important to me. I do not know what I would do without my Jesus-loving girlfriends and relationships where I feel known, loved, and supported. I cannot imagine a life without families that love my kids and my husband and believers that are cheering for us. I know what it is to have this, and I want it for everyone!

We are not meant to walk out this Christian life alone. We need each other. Galatians 6:2 says, “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ.” This can only happen in community. If we don’t have people to share our burdens with, there is no way they can help carry them. I encourage you to prioritize community and relationships in new ways. If you feel like you don’t need community, ask the Lord to give you a hunger for it.

Proverbs 27:17 reads, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Growth happens in community that cannot happen otherwise. When we allow people to really see us and we are able to share our successes and failures, our sorrows and our joys, our struggles and our hopes in a safe space with people we trust that are cheering for us, something sacred happens … and these relationships grow us.

My prayer is that as a church, we will have a hunger for community and that we will have a love for one another that is contagious. You might be in a place where you are longing for community, and you are just not sure where to begin. A great place to start is to join one of our LifeGroups. This is where Dusty and I started to get to know people at LifeChurch and build community. It took some time, and we had to prioritize it, but it is so very worth it.

This is an example of a prayer we can pray today while we think about community as a church: “Father, thank you for your heart to be in relationship with us. Thank you for constantly being with us and for us, even when our hearts are far from you. Thank you for never giving up on us, even when we do things we know have hurt your heart. Please help us live in precious community with one another in love and unity. Let our relationships be pleasing to you. Please let us encourage one another and sharpen one another as we keep our eyes on You. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Cheering for you all,
Christie Braun