Last night I was meeting with some other ministers and they asked me what are some words that I wish described CollegeLife? There were lots of words- Christ centered, relevant, college led, enjoyable,but one word I said if I could use just one word to describe CollegeLife, it would be “community.”
Let’s face it, you can listen to our music on your iPod. You can even listen to Greg Pinkner and Rick Dunn, on at least two iTunes podcasts.
So, CollegeLife has to be about so much more than music-and-a-message.
It has to be about relationships.
Many times you will hear me say I want CollegeLife to be a place where we: Grow Spiritually and Connect Relationally. I think both of these happen best in the context of relationship.
Not just relationships with others but your relationship with Christ as well.
Lets say there are 3 key relationships you should be working on:
1. Intimacy with God
2. Community with Christians
3. Influence with non-Christians.
How are you doing? Perhaps you are really strong in one and not focused at all on another?
What steps could you take this week to strengthen your relationships? CollegeLife must do the hard work of pressing into these relationships. At times it will feel awkward, it will be hard, it will be easy to ask for another sermon, you’ll want to hide yourself, you’ll want to quit, give up and say I can do it myself. You’ll convince yourself you can find community later, I’ll say “next week i’ll engage that person in a deeper conversation”, no one wants to talk to me, all these people already have friends… And we sit in a room with everyone desiring deeper and truer community and no one taking the risk of pursuing community.
It is during these times we as a group must press harder into the Christ life and pursue dying to self. In a world where we have to prove ourselves to be accepted, imagine a community that accepted others because we’ve been accepted. Imagine a community that accepted people that were nothing like them- it would be a great reflection of Christ accepting people that are nothing like Him!
We all want community, but it is something NO ONE can do for you. It is something you must take part in.
What part will you play?
Fortunately there are no bench players in the game of community. We all play a part.
In the coming days there will be more posts on the 3 key relationships and how we can grow in those.
But for now- how are you doing in real community? YOU could be the initiator of amazing, Christ like community around you!
