10 daily habits that will help you connect with God: Lean into community

Howdy! Being college students, I'm sure we've all heard the "get involved" speech from professors, alumni, grad students, etc., telling you how important it is to lean into opportunities that build our network and resume. Guess what? As Christians, we are called to do the same-- to lean into community, i.e. the church; the body of Christ; brothers and sisters.

Created for Community

But Jess, why is community important? If God is a personal God, doesn't that mean that my faith is independent? GREAT QUESTION!! Let's look at some scripture:

Genesis 2:18 says, "The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him,”' (New Living Translation). Beginning with the creation of Eve for Adam, God declared that He did not create us to live this life alone. You were created to for community; hard wired to need people to support and champion you in your faith.

This is where the Church comes into play.

The Church

First things first, we can look to Paul's letters of Colossians to define what the church is:

• "Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything," Colossians 1:18 (New Living Translation)

• "I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church," Colossians 1:24 (New Living Translation)

Paul reiterates several times throughout the New Testament that the Church is the body of Christ. What does this mean? 1 Corinthians 12:12 says "For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit," (English Standard Version).

Because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, we've all been given the right to become children of God and becoming one with Him. As brothers and sisters in Christ, we are not only one with God, but we are one with each other-- the body of Christ, baptized into one body-- the big C church, as my pastor would say (hence why I capitalized the word).

So, what does all of this mean? Well, in response to your previous question, if God created us for community and the Church is brothers and sisters united as the body of Christ, it means that our faith is actually dependent, on Christ and each other.

This leads me to our daily habit:

Daily habit #6: Lean into community

So, what role does seeking community within the church play in your relationship with Christ? three scriptures immediately come to mind:

1) Encouragement

"Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near," Hebrews 10:24-25 (New Living Translation).

2) Strength

"Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!" Ecclesiates 4:9-10 (English Standard Translation).

3) Healing

"Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working," James 5:16 (English Standard Version).

Testimony Time!

I'm going to be honest-- since moving to College Station, my faith has been tested. I didn't expect it to be easy because we scripture tells us that the Christian life is, in fact, not easy, however the part of transitioning that I thought was going to be smooth sailing has been the roughest waters to navigate: seeking and finding a church home.

Stuck and Sifted

At the beginning of the week, one of my best friends came to visit and in the midst of my most stressful night of the semester, I told her what a struggle it has been to get plugged into a local church because the structure of the churches I had visited thus far were not fitting in and around my study schedule (yes, going to Texas A&M REQUIRES a study schedule or you are one million years behind). I expressed to her that I felt as though I had to choose between college and God, and that it feel?s impossible to maintain my relationship with Him right now. I told her I felt completely stuck and that made me, honestly, quite annoyed with God. Why would He bring me to College Station with a unique purpose to glorify Him and expand His Kingdom and not make it immediately evident to me where my community is? If I have a purpose here, why isn't He providing the time and space for me to seek community? Why do I feel like I have to choose, and why does it feel like the right decision is to choose school? GOD WHERE ARE YOU?!

And you know what her response was? We are not promised an easy life, in fact, we are promised hardships and trials (John 16:33), and God doesn't expect us to have a perfect faith. Sometimes God allows Satan to sift us; to shake us up and tear us down to strengthen our faith, bring us to repentance, and add to our testimony so that He will be even more glorified when we share our story. Umm... WHAT?!

She, then, showed me how God did this to one of His closest disciples and champions of faith, Simon Peter aka Peter: "Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat. But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers," Luke 22:31 (New Living Translation).

Encouraged. Strengthened. Healed. I tell you this story for the exact reason my dear friend told me-- so that God may be glorified and so that your faith may be encouraged and strengthened, and so that you may be healed; brought to repentance; renewed. Y'all what an example of community, am I right?!

Don't Give Up

This life-giving chat reminded me of my life motto: I don't give up. My life verse Philippians 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me," (New King James Version). Despite popular belief, Paul isn't saying here that because I am in Christ I recieve physical strength (though God can 100% give you physical strength if you ask for it)-- no, Paul is actually telling us that because we are in Christ, it is HIS strength that fills us, i.e. our strength is dependent on the Lord.

My point? Community can be hard to come by, but allow me as your sister in Christ to encourage you: DO NOT GIVE UP! Galatians 6:9 says, "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up," (New International Version). You may be sifted and loose sight of Jesus for a minute, but the Lord has promised His faithfulness and provision to us. So, don't give up... ever.

Call to Action

Community will come. I know this because we were not created to do this life alone. So, friend, even if you and I are in the same boat and you barely have the strength to seek community let alone find it, lean into the strength of the Lord. And if you have found your community, lean in. Be encouraged. Be strengthened. Be healed. That way, you can turn around and pour into others as they've poured into you.

XOXO,

Jess :)