i have been painting signs for KnuHa events this past week. one lesson i learned from all this painting is if i want to be good at painting i cannot be a perfectionist. lesson number two, i am not meant to be an art major. and lesson number three is that community is vital in my life. i came to this realization because painting is like the way a community should be. each color on its own is unique, but when you mix them together or use them in a painting they can compliment each other well and look even better than when alone. this made me think about the past two weeks. i have experienced many times how we are called to be individuals, yet live in community with one another. we are called to work with each other, encourage one another, and use the gifts we have been given to build up the body of Christ.
last week during prayer group i was incredibly encouraged by the people who came and everything that happened. the night before i was having a not so good night and felt really alone, well the Lord used my brothers and sisters (without them even knowing it probably) to bring me great joy during prayer and worship. we were able to give updates about people we prayed for during the summer and it was incredible to hear the stories. God is on the move all around the world. (we also sang this song about finding fullness of joy in the Lord, lets just say it was in my head for awhile after that). "You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." (psalm 16:11)
another way i experienced the body of Christ working well together is while on a leaders retreat. i saw some of the gifts of my res life staff being used. we did a low ropes course together and it was awesome to see how we worked together. it is such a blessing that we each have different strengths (and weaknesses) because we will be able to support each other well this year. during one of the challenges i became nervous because there was a huge horizontal log we had to get over that was probably 8 feet tall. i had my doubts, but with the encouragement of one another and us talking about a way to get the last person across, we were successfully able to do it.
there have been many other times these past few weeks how God has shown me what community is all about. i have learned that i CANNOT live this life alone. i need people surrounding me. i need people challenging me. i need people to pray with. i need the body. and i want to be part of the body. God has shown me that we can all use our gifts to compliment each others' gifts. we can be the body. we can live like Christ called us to live if He is our center and the head of it all.
i encourage you all to find community. seek after Christ and find other people who are doing the same thing. find people who will ask you the hard questions. find people who will pray for you. find people who you can be real with you and you can be real with. find people who you can serve. just as colors can mix together to make a beautiful painting, we can come together to be the church with Jesus as our focus.
i want to end with a thank you. thank you to my brothers and sisters that have shown me Christ's love. He is using all of you and it is soooo awesome to be part of it. Keep doing His Kingdom work.
(random quote of the night by my roomie taylor, "if you go without coffee for three days, that means i won't be able to smell it." she also told me she would go without something for three days because i said i should try going without coffee for three days. she is a true friend.)
