The Community We Carry

A few decades ago, my childhood church entered the era of Kids Praise Musicals. Sign me up. This was my jam. I loved the speaking parts, the choreography, the practices, all of it. Those were truly great times and great memories. And you must admit, the whole concept of Kids Praise was pretty genius. This was the time in Evangelical churches where hymnals were exiting, and praise and worship music was emerging. Why not have the sweet voices of a kids’ choir belt out these new songs? Eventually the grown-ups joined in, and boom, a new style of worship music commences and takes hold of churches across the nation.

This morning I woke up with a song in my head. I had to look up the words to make sure I had them right. I did. They were from a song in the Kids Praise 3 Musical. As I contemplated the words, I felt tears start to sting my eyes. What happened? Where is that church? Does this type of family-like community still exist?

Welcome to the family,
We’re glad that you have come
To share your life with us,
As we grow in love,
And may we always be to you
What God would have us be,
A family always there,
To be strong and to lean on.

May we learn to love each other
More with each new day,
May words of love be on our lips
In everything we say.
May the Spirit melt our hearts,
And teach us how to pray,
That we might be a true family.

(Copyright Owner: © 1982 Rettino-Kerner Publishing)

I keep coming back to these words.

As we grow in love

May we always be to you what God would have us be.

A family always there to lean on.

May words of love be on our lips in everything we say.

And then this from the Book of Acts in the New Testament:

Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Acts 2:46-47

Maybe the deeper question is, where do you find the people who exemplify the lyrics in this song?

And deeper than that, do I exemplify these lyrics in my daily life?

I might have a thought. What if we stopped expecting Church to be the place where this kind of community happens, and started realizing that we carry community within us? A welcome presence that others can’t help but be drawn to.

Looking back over my week, I’ve experienced this kind of community a few times, and not one time was it an organized gathering in a building. I had a phone call with my dear childhood friend one morning. When we hung up, I thought to myself how beautiful it was to talk with someone like-minded. We get each other. Our deep connection comes from years of friendship, and Jesus being with us through all of the things.

I gathered with an eclectic group of friends over Zoom to share hurts and process through some wounding theology we had all experienced at the hands of the capital “C” church. Kind of ironic, but it sure felt like carrying each other’s burdens.

And just now I returned home from running errands and visiting with some new friends I’m making in our new-to-us small town. We chatted about this and that and laughed a lot. One visit meant the world to me. A friend pulled me aside in my chiropractor’s office, looked me in the eye, and asked how I was “really” doing. That question—where you can’t even try to come up with a pretend answer. After sharing a hug and deciding we need to unpack more with a glass of wine on my deck, we went our separate ways. My heart was full.

So here is what I want to invite you to do. It’s not an obligation. It’s an option, an invitation. Read the words of the above lyrics, Welcome to the Family, and sit with them. What do they stir in you? Is there a longing? Is there an invitation to something deeper?

If we cross paths, I hope you sense a welcoming presence in me. And if you don’t, because sometimes I’m not having a good day, maybe you can be the community I need in that moment.