Recently our church adopted an “easy to remember” mission statement. We decided that there were three main themes that fit the direction of our church; God Encounters, Authentic Community and Culture Shift. Everything we do really does fit into these three categories. However, as a leader, I am never satisfied with a well crafted mission/vision statement. I want to see it lived out. I want to know that our efforts really do exemplify what we have put down on paper. With that said, building an authentic community can mean so many different things to different people. I love the idea. I love the concept but what does it look like? In my opinion community involves three elements; Giving, Receiving and Being.
Giving is an important part of any community. I’m not necessarily talking about money but time, resources and abilities. You can’t be an effective part of a community if you aren’t willing to give of yourself. If a person simply takes, and does not give, they only seek to benefit from the community rather than becoming a part of it. Giving is important, not just as a way to bless others, but also in building confidence as a contributor. Your contribution, no matter how small, is an important part of the community you belong to. It enables you to operate in your gift and others to benefit from that gift.
Receiving is also an important part of community. Everyone has needs. Some of the basic needs affecting everyone is food, clothing, shelter. We also need acceptance and love. In an authentic community I need to be able to receive as well as give. Self sufficiency is what we all strive for but the truth is we all have times in our lives when we need help. If we are too proud to receive help we cut of the flow of life that comes from being part of a community. Receiving allows you to benefit from other’s gifts in the community.
Being is the third, but in my opinion no less important, part of community. In order to be an authentic or “real” community, we have to be able to be ourselves. We need the freedom to be successful and to fail. There are times when people don’t live up to our expectations. There are times when we don’t live up to other’s expectations. That happens everyday. The depth of our relationships cannot be defined by focussing on where other’s have failed us. Community is built on honesty and trust. Honesty is part of creating a culture of honor. When we are able to be honest about our failures as well as our successes. If you don’t have the ability to fail then you create a pseudo-community where no one can be real. Relationships are built on what is expected instead of what is. Most people will receive instruction/correction if they don’t feel they are being judged. In an authentic community, the goal is to help connect people with the freedom that comes from living in the truth. Trust is built as we learn to be honest with one another about both what we have done well and where we have failed. This will enable us to extend grace to each other in our interactions. If you are a great servant then be great at what you do. Don’t judge others because they don’t serve like you do. Honor their gift. What do they bring to the community that you appreciate? If we judge people based on what we value, we remove the diversity that makes community so beautiful. Do what you do well and allow others to do what they do well. I believe that as we practice this we will build the authentic community that we are looking for.
That’s the view from here…
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