purpose in relationships

Embracing Your Community

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about community, and let me tell you I am so blessed by my people. My influencers.

Some people I’ve known for years, some I’ve formed a lifelong friendship with after high school, and others I’ve just met over the past few months and the bond is just clearly defined by Jesus. All of these relationships have pushed me and challenged me in ways I’ve never thought possible.

I used to think that the only way I could find my purpose in life was if I figured it out all by myself.

Don’t get me wrong, some of that needs to be hashed out personally between Jesus and I, but I’ve come to the beautiful realization that He created us for community.

I’ve found way more purpose than I ever would have imagined in these past months just because of who I decided to surround myself with: passionate Jesus followers who live a life defined by the purposes and GOOD things He has for us.

A life without community is simply not how God intended us to live.

I think we tend to shy away from people and opening up to others because society has so engrained in our minds that our purpose in life is being bigger and better and winning at the competition. We compare, we contrast, and ultimately, we discourage ourselves by setting such an impossible standard.

Yet, how AMAZING would it be if we encouraged our sisters, our brothers, our co-workers into their purposes by living truth and edifying one another? Running this Christian race, we need the constant reminder that we are in this together, not alone and that we are living a life that is defined by the love of Jesus and sharing that with the world.

Honestly, there are some days that I don’t necessarily feel like living a life of purpose, BUT my community won’t let me settle.

They drive me. They push me further.

They will speak the hard truths that I need to hear and remind me of those little promises that I know to be true, but need to hear again and again. They push me to step into who God has designed me to be and call me out when I need it.

He created us to encourage.

He created us to act in unity.

He created us to build one another up.

“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11

I’ve been pushed to love Jesus more, to pursue the passions of my heart, to search out the scriptures for myself and to live a life of purpose that evidently screams, “I am made in the image of God, I have worth and I am chasing after Jesus with people who are likeminded.”

Let’s get rid of this unhealthy competition lifestyle and be led into a community of believers who encourage us to run further, deeper, and more honestly.

Receive the encouragement. Give out encouragement.

Choose your tribe who holds nothing back and run with them.

It’s a beautiful place, my friends. Find purpose in that.

– Becca