Daily Devotional

Yesterday in his sermon Pastor Jim reminded us of the need we all have for intimate relationships. He reminded us that many things can fill our time but no matter how busy we are, we need to make time for others. This wasn’t just his opinion; Scripture is full of references that support this truth.

I once heard a story about a massive earthquake that leveled a village in Turkey in 1999. Though no one knows when an earthquake might hit, the leaders of this village were actually warned thirty years earlier that they were directly over a fault line and would thereby need to move. Their response was to instead redraw the geological map and move the fault line so that it no longer showed the fault line running under their village. There’s no doubt this was a far more convenient solution than the alternative. Everyone felt better and no one needed to uproot their lives and move. The problem is that it didn’t change the reality of the situation.

Sometimes we come to truths that we don’t like and so we try to move the line to make ourselves feel more comfortable. That might make us feel better for a little while, but eventually the truth shows up. One of those truths is that we are designed for connection and community; the Bible says that we in fact “belong” to each other.

I have to admit I’m a pretty independent person. I’m not sure how I feel about the idea that I “belong” to anyone, but regardless of how I (or you) might feel about that truth, it’s the truth. Yes, we are all individuals, and yes, our faith is a personal faith, but it was never meant to be a private faith. We are created for community. I am not the exception; you are not the exception.
Not only is this true, but it’s supposed to have an impact on how we live. It’s easy to intellectually agree with something without it changing our behavior. I KNOW it’s good to eat vegetables, but I’m usually on the same side as my kids when it comes to complaining about having to eat them. We might KNOW we are created for community, but we don’t always behave how we say we believe.

Connection and community can certainly be a challenge in our current socially distanced world, but it’s not impossible. When my wife and I were dating she lived in Germany for 2 years. The only way we could talk was over the phone…with a very expensive rate. Because things like Zoom and FaceTime didn’t exist, we literally didn’t see each other’s faces for six months at a time. Even with that reality we were still able to continue our relationship and grow closer. It wasn’t that long ago but it’s amazing how technology has advanced. No, these technological forms of community aren’t the same as seeing someone face to face, but it’s far better than nothing, and far better than it used to be.

God calls us to community because He knows we need it. He knows we need it because He made us that way. You need others and others need you. Don’t allow anything to isolate you or draw you away from others. The truth is, we need each other, and that’s just how God wants it to be.

"New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved."