Dear Brothers and Sisters,
During our visits to Neighborhood Groups and in the community roundtables, we’ve been inspired by your desire for our community to be more aware of each other’s needs, but also to be able to celebrate God’s provision together. We hope that these monthly notes will help us do that.
John 13 reminds us that building this kind of Christian community is part of our call as Christians. In verse 34, after Jesus had washed the feet of his disciples and exhorted them to wash one another’s feet, he says: “Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.”
This is such an encouraging but also challenging verse. Encouraging because while outreach programming and other intentional efforts to bear witness to the Gospel are essential, the most important thing doesn’t require an Excel spreadsheet or a Doodle. On the other hand, it does require us to give of our time to build relationships and to grow in our patience as we persevere in love. To practice the kind of love that 1 Corinthians 13 describes as patient, kind, humble, generous, and persistent. The kind of love that makes friends out of enemies and bridges the divides of bitter political or theological differences.
Since the heat of summer often slows our pace and creates just a bit more room in our schedule, might we use this summer as a church to focus on loving one another as Christ has loved us? Could we love each other in such radical ways that we are both a blessing to our brother or sister and also a witness to the Gospel?
This could look like:
Inviting people from church that you don’t know, or that you’ve always wanted to get to know better, into your home;
Sending people from church who bless you through their service or worship a note of encouragement or thanks;
Offering a hand of support to others in the church who could use some extra support through offers of babysitting, home repairs, gardening, meals, or even just friendship;
Love also requires being honest about your needs so that others in our community have the opportunity to love on you.
This summer could we all commit to reach outside of our normal comfort zone or routine in order to show someone that we love them and by extension to evidence our belief in Christ?
In the coming months and years, we’ll undoubtedly be starting new ministries at the church and we’ll continue in our outreach to love our neighbors. But as we do, we’ll be sustained in this work by being a church who truly loves one another. That is our hope, our prayer, and our challenge.
Because of Christ’s Love,
Shapri LoMaglio, together with the rest of the Diaconate