No man is an island, we can be found
No man is an island, let your guard down
You don't have to fight me, I am for you
We're not meant to live this life alone
~Tenth Avenue North “No Man is an Island”
At one time, I sat at this place in my life where I felt so alone. As a young girl I learned to build up these walls to protect myself. And I had all these guidelines for who I would let in. I had a lot of guidelines which left little to no room for people. I often felt like I was living on an island. Really, it is no fun living on an island... alone.
For the longest time, I was afraid to let anybody in. Now, there are a million things that I could say about that right there, I could fill the sea! The important part is I was afraid and I thought I could just slide by in life with a small safety net of a support system. I stuck close to my comfort zone, never venturing too far out.
God has been so gracious to me, breaking down walls, healing the broken places, washing and renewing my spirit. It took years to get to a place where community didn’t scare me. On the contrary, I actually started to crave it! You see, community is important to God. He created us to be in community. He created the church like the body. You need eyes, ears, hands, feet. One doesn’t work without the others. And so, you can only go on so long before you begin to crave community.
God began to reveal to me, my deep need for community. I had a rather strong online life for a while where I would read, ALL. THE. BLOGS! I would find these extremely encouraging women who wrote online and for a season that was exactly what I needed. But! I began to yearn for these encouraging women in real life. I would ask, where are all these real life women?! I need them. I need to have these real life women who encourage me face to face.
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17
I began to pray and ask God to reveal these people to me. I knew that God knew what I needed and so I trusted that He would make it happen. You want to know something funny? He answered! The process wasn’t easy. I had to go through a few things first. Remember, to refine something it must be put through the fire. However the result is a beautiful thing. And that’s what community is, really. A beautiful, sometimes messy, thing.
I have this larger safety net of support now: spiritual encouragers, life givers, creative encouragers, professional encouragers, emotional encouragers. I can’t imagine my life without of some of these people! It is like a breath of fresh air, to look at someone and go, “Me too!” We don’t always get everything right and sometimes being in community is downright hard. But sister, it is sooooo worth it!
Your story might not look like mine. Your reason for seeking community may be very different. I want to encourage you though, give it to God. He will answer. He will give you what you need. Each person’s community will be different, large or small. The most important thing is that you find others who will lift you up, that don’t pass judgment, or scold you but love you through this life. They are out there. Sometimes they are right in front of your nose. Sometimes, they are the ones you would least expect!
Post by: Jimmie Lee
If you are interested in joining a community and/or making some new friends, the Women’s Ministry has a bunch of great opportunities for you to get plugged in! In addition to the different events we hold at church, there are also a variety of groups you can join. We offer small group Bible/book study, Titus 2 (mentoring program), Encourage (ministry for expectant moms), Women’s Prayer Team, and the Social Media Ministry. If you would like more information, please check out the other sections of this blog or email us at: women@westridge.cc
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