Created for Community
By Karisa Tolley
I remember when I was in elementary school and every summer, my brother, my mom, and I would go to this local pool with some of my moms' friends and their kids. It was our summer tradition. I always had the best time, even though I was the only girl with all the boys. The place was fun, the ice cream was good, the swimming was fun, and jumping off the big diving board was a lot of fun! However, one year we went back without those friends and it was…different. Everything about the place was the same, but the people I made those memories with weren’t there. It made me quickly realize that what made the experience so great every year was my community!
That seems to be the theme of life most of the time. We have these core memories, things that we remember forever and tell stories of, and usually, they're attached to the people we experienced the memories with. We were created to live in community with one another. From the beginning of time, God knew we needed each other; Genesis 2:18, “Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good for man to be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him”. God has always intended for us to do life together.
I love the phrase, “better together” because it's so true! We gain so much from being in community; friendship, companionship, accountability, support, encouragement, but one of the most important is healing. A few years ago I heard the phrase, “Freedom is found in community” and that could not be more true. James 5:16 says, “Confess your sins one to another and pray for one another, that you may be healed”. There is so much strength, power, and healing found in community.
In my sophomore year of college, I was at a new school, a new church, and in a new city. I remembered feeling lost and alone. So, I decided to join a small group at the church I was attending. That group changed everything! I made friends that I still have today, they helped me get more connected in the church, and that led to me joining the college internship program at the church. That decision changed the course of my life! Fast forward to my junior year of college, I finally gained enough confidence to share with my community something traumatic I had walked through a few years prior. Not only did my community come around me, love me, support me, and pray with me, but they also connected me with people who had been through similar things that could provide help. My community helped me heal!
If God wanted us to do life alone, he would have never created anyone besides Adam. But his plan was always for human beings to share life together. If Jesus chose to have a community of 12 disciples while on earth, how much more do we need a community? Lean into your community, join a Radiant Sisters small group, make lifelong friendships, and experience the fullness of life that comes from it! We were created for this and we truly are BETTER together!