Where We Belong

Back in those years when I was actively serving the church as one of its pastors, my community was easy to find.  Even though I moved from one church to another, there was a ready made community waiting for me in the new church setting.  And even though I knew no one in the church community in the beginning of my pastorates, I had a clearly defined role within that community.  Maybe by some standards it was not really a community, but there was always a group of people who were a supportive and caring part of my life. 

 

Retirement changed that world.  Moving from an urban church setting to a rural one where no one really knew anything much about me put me in new territory as far as community was concerned.  The community that evolved lacked the organization and size of the ones known in those pre-retirement days and at times it seemed invisible, but ever so slowly I began seeing it being shaped around me.  None of us were created to live alone.  We need one another.  It is the way the Creator God made us and the way He intends for us live this life.

 

Community defines to whom and where we belong.  It has within it those people for whom we sense some responsibility, accountability, and concern.  And it is a two way street, sometimes the flow is in the giving and sometimes it is in the receiving.  There are many types of communities that touch our lives.  Some are social, some are academic, some are work related, some are value based.  While the communities we enter and leave may speak of the certain change in our lives, the one community which remains constant is the community of faith.  Whether it is experienced within the confines of the church, or out in the world, the community of faith is the one where the primary connection shared is the one with the Creator.  This community of faith roots us and enables us to live with a sense of knowing where and to Whom we belong.