Community. It’s something that we are so clearly made to live in. The Church is a community with a shared passion for and exhalation of God, but even people who don’t know Jesus seem to still long for community – to be known and to know others. We were created to live in this relationship with other people.

It’s not an easy thing to do. We often bicker and divide and adapt as we learn how mutually sinful people can collide and live life together. There is much patience and grace needed in community and that is were a lot of the beauty lies. This week I am reminded again so heavily of the importance of community, whether it’s in raising children together in a “village” mentality, in refining each other, growing with each other, or just simply laughing with each other. These aspects are so necessary and life giving.

It’s something I’ve always treasured dearly, was taught thoroughly in childhood, and seek after wholeheartedly in adulthood. The need for it is in you and it’s in me just like it’s in the people that we serve. We all desire to belong.

This is something I’ve seen modeled in the CPR-3 Movement as our career partners on the ground have established community in Haiti and as we work through the local church to form communities of believers reaching their communities. We long for you to feel this relationship with your brothers and sisters in other countries just like we hope you do in your own city. It’s incredible when you can meet somebody for the first time, even if they don’t look like you, talk like you, or live like you, they worship the same God you do and there is a mutual understanding of love and unity in that community.

I hope you are finding community in your walk of life and especially in your church. I hope you’ll consider giving to the CPR-3 community and that you’ll experience the community of believers that extends past culture, ethnicity, language, and economic leverage.

 

Erin Cooper is the Communications Director for CPR-3 and also works as the Assistant Coordinator for Momentum Youth Conference.