Community

com·mu·ni·ty

kəˈmyo͞onədē/

noun

a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals.

Every last Sunday of the Month, my church family hosts a potluck. All, well most, of the members bring in or buy a dish for everyone to essentially 'break bread' and fellowship with each other.

I finally brought my camera out for the first time all summer a few weekends ago to capture this fun moment. It was a bright and sunny day and we planned to have this potluck outside by the pool. Members brought out their bathing suits and cooking skills, giving the potluck a cookout feel. For hours, we ate, laughed, ate, swam, talked, and ate some more.

Sundays like this remind me of Acts 2:46, "Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts." Any time I'm with my church family, I feel just as they did. There's something about being around world changers; they fully walk in freedom and are unashamed to be themselves. They inspire me by just 'being' them. They exemplify Christ in the simplest ways; in helping each other financially, celebrating birthdays together, and joining to contend in the Spirit. They love unconditionally and don't let offense settle in our home and outside of it.

Throughout the years that we've been together, we've been able to continuously develop our vision of community and family. It's amazing how faithful God has been to us as we stay faithful and focused on Him. We don't worry about what is said about us or what the world thinks Church looks like, instead we focus on what God has called us, as a small but vital, piece of the Body of Christ to be. And because of that, we are doing just fine :).

This is a small glimpse of my church operating in Community.