Living In Community Was God's Idea

“When we place our faith in Christ, God becomes our Father, we become his children, other believers become our brothers and sisters, and the church becomes ourspiritual family.” (Rick Warren - Purpose Driven Life ) We were formed for God’s family, The Christian community exists because of the grace and mercy of God, and Christian unity is only possible through the bondingwork of the Holy Spirit. We were made to fit into community - relationships with one another. It is easy to resist friendships and deep commitments, after all they are hard work and at times risky, but life works best when we serve, grow, share, laugh and live together. This week we will see many in our community come together and serve at our Flower Festival - the food booths (and the yummy Foursquare Hot Fudge Cake Booth) and many line the parade routes. I enjoy going to the park to see others and to applaud the many people who make the LFC booth happen. I also enjoy placing the fudge on the ice cream that is sitting on top of that brownie and then doing the Pastor B artistic move on the whipped cream. It is a joy to serve others and serve with others. Some people think that being a Christian or a person of faith is solely about our relationship with God. “I can worship God in my own way,” they think. “I don’t need togo to church or associate with other Christians.” But the Creation account tells a different story. The first man, Adam, enjoyed a private, intimate relationship with God,but God himself said it wasn’t enough; it wasn’t good. We were made by God to need community. Community is Jesus’ CommandThe New Testament makes it clear that Christians are part of God’s family and called into community. In His earthly ministry, Jesus didn’t just deal one-on-one with individuals. One of the first things He did was to form a “small group” of twelve disciples. He said, “I will build my church—and the gates of hell will notprevail against it!” (Matthew 16:18) The Great Commandment reminds us: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.” (Mark 12:33)And there’s a second part: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus says that both parts of that Great Commandment are equally important the foundation of what it means to follow Him! Talking to His disciples on the night before His death, Jesus unpacked this “great commandment” further, saying, “If you love me, keep my commands… A newcommand I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 14:15; 13:34-35). Jesus had a dream—of a new community where His followers would be known for their self-sacrificing, other-oriented love, a love that would be so startling, so unique, that it would instantly identify us to outsiders as Jesus’ disciples. On that same night, Jesus prayed to his Father, saying: “… protect them by the power of your name …so that they may be one, as we are one…. My prayer isnot for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one….” (John 17:11; 20-21)Think of that! Over two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, prayed for you, for me, for all of us. And what did He pray? For our oneness, our unity,our love for one another. It was His heart, His hope, His prayer, and His dream.Human community was God’s idea, and Christian community is Jesus’ “new command” and His dream. God’s family, the Christian community, is part of thepackage of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Community it God's design.
Community is essential and as we move into Summer, I wanted to encourage you to look at your level of commitment to community.
I think it is a reasonable request and truth be told, we need each other. It is together that we grow, support, serve and impact our community.
Pastor Bill Hybels writes of meeting with a young couple at his church one Sunday who had a newborn baby girl named Emily with severe birth defects. Her physical problems were so serious that they would kill her within a matter of weeks. Hybels, overwhelmed, asked if there was anything the church could do to help. He writes, “The father responded with words that still amaze me. He said, ‘Bill, we’re okay. Really, we are. We’ve been in a loving small group for years. Our group members knew this pregnancy had complications. Theywere at our house the night we learned the news, and they were at the hospital when Emily was delivered. They even cleaned our house and fixed our meals when we brought her home. They pray for us constantly and call us several times everyday. They are even helping us plan Emily’s funeral.’” Just then three other couples stepped forward and surrounded Emily and her parents. It was a picture I will carry with me to my grave, a tight-knit huddle of loving brothers and sisters doing their best to soften one of the cruelest blows life can throw. Where, I wondered as they left, would that family be, where would they go, how would they handle this heartbreak, without the church?” There are a lot of things that happen to us (individually and collectively) as a part of church life - but church life is best lived in community. Romans 12:5: “… so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” This summer, will you find ways to get more involved? If you are working a shift at the Flower Festival, make sure you get to know the others in the booth - come a bit early and meet the people in the shift ahead of you, or stay a few extra minutes and meet those in the shift behind you. Also, do all you can to be with us at Los Alamos Park on July 4th for the LFC 4th Celebration. If you are in the Air Force or Public Safety you can join us for our Appreciation BBQ too on July 22nd at Ryon Park, if you have not already done so you can join a small group experience, Life Transformation Groups (just contact the office and we will get you connected) there are many other opportunities and of course many teams looking for those who desire to use their gifts to serve. We do church as a team and in community with one another. We have a place for you to connect, grow and learn.
Please consider the following:
I will do more than belong – I will participate.
I will do more than care – I will help.
I will do more than believe – I will practice.
I will do more than be fair – I will be kind.
I will do more than forgive – I will forget.
I will do more than dream – I will work.
I will do more than teach – I will inspire.
I will do more than give – I will serve.
I will do more than live – I will grow.
I will do more than be friendly – I will be a friend. - William Ward

As our church experiences growth, changes, people in the military being transferred (necessitating saying good-bye to some great people each year), adding new teams, dealing with facility expansion etc. it is imperative we get to know each other better and stay connected at a heart level - this is community! So, welcome to the summer at LFC and a time to get more connected if you chose to be and I hope you will.