The Body? Community? What?

Below is an edited version of a facebook message I sent to several of my college friends concerning the issue of christian community on the campus of my alma mater. I pray you are encouraged and challenged to new ways of living.

I can't help but feel that God desires to do soooooo much more in that area (community) though. I have recently begun to plug into a church plant down here called antioch. www.antiochnorman.com One thing that God has been revealing to me through this amazing group of people, is how powerful community is. God desires to use the body of christ. At antioch we've been going over the spiritual gifts in a sermon series on the Holy Spirit. I confess, that on the overall, the gifts are a fairly new thing for me. While I have experienced many myself, including giving words of prophecy, prophetic song, and have had such things spoken over and into my own life by others, it is not something that was dealt with much to at all at SC. Going through this series, has made me realize just how much God desires to pour those things out on us!! And just how life changing and powerful they can be when used properly!! For the gifts to work properly, the body must be working together, and the body must be seeking after the Father.

As I've stated before, I believe SC has no real sense of christian community as a whole. There are some AMAZING hearts on campus! But there is no strong sense that we are bound together in Christ as family. Why?? The more I think and ponder on this, the more I believe there are strong ties to the SC curse. Overcommitment. One thing about being in powerful, intimate, passionate, and God seeking community, is that it is freakin inconvienent!! It's hard!! It's a commitment to other people to focus and invest time and energy into each others lives! But when we are so busy that we don't have time to think, much less meet together with the sole focus bein on knowing God better in the context of the Acts 2 community, how is the body suppose to function properly? I believe that some of the small groups on campus are a great place to start. But this isn't something just for a select few. There are believers on the SC campus that are drowning in lies, are being held in bondage by their past, and are living inside prisonal fortresses made by their life experience and they need people who will love on them and speak truth into their lives and walk with them through it all.

You are ALL leaders on the SC campus. People will listen to you, people will follow you. As such, I want to challenge you to take the first steps towards full community. I know, this prolly seems like my idea and I'm trying to force you into implementing it. Yes, it's my evil plan to save the world...(five iron anyone?) My prayer is that you realize how truly important this is. Use Acts as a general guide. If you want to know what the fullness of christian community looks like, go read that. But there are some things to consider. Heres where the rubber meets the road.

Here are my suggested steps.

1.PRAY!!! Again, I'm bringing this to you for consideration. But I don't believe that God would lay it only on my heart for SC, and not put it on the hearts of anyone thats still there. Pray for insight, guidance, wisdom, heck even motivation and clarity if you are struggling to realize this.

2.Cut some stuff out. I am sooooo serious. Now that I'm out from under the overcommitment curse, I realize just how debilitating it can be. So much so, that I will even go as far to say it is a Satanic attack on the lives of many people. Not all, but many. Pretty hard to "sit and wait upon the Lord" if you are running around with your head chopped off. Make sense? Seriously pray about cutting stuff out so you have time to commit to spending in purposeful fellowship with one another without being rushed and cramming it into an already busy schedule. We make time for what is important to us.

3.Be in worship. Not just in chapel, but on your own!! YAY! I am a VERY strong believer that being in the presence of God has the power to change lives and break chains of oppression. We don't worship to 'feel' God, we worship to give to God what is rightfully His!! Worship can change lives and situations! I'm becoming more and more a fan of having some sort of worship at every purposeful gathering of believers.

4. Be in the Word. God speaks to us and fills us up from the word. I know for me, the more I take in, the more I can pour out. The more I pour out, the more I glorify God and impact lives around me!!

5.EAT! Food just brings any group together.

6. Commit. Community is hard. It's takes being open and at times vunerable with one another. It's not convenient, but it's totally worth it.

7. Lastly, if you lack anything...ask for it!! Wisdom, knowledge, revelation, gifts of the spirit....anything. Ask for it. He WANTS to pour it out on you!!

Pray about this. I'm not there, I don't want this to be something that you try to do because a friend of yours is all fired up about it. Do it because you want to and feel it's important. If you aren't feeling any of that, again, ASK! Seek God out on it. Don't rest until you have an answer from Him. Anyhoo, I pray that SOMETHING in this novel speaks to you or encourages you in some fashion. I love you all and pray for your personal ministries. Ciao!