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Together

Happy new year!

My church's new year tradition is to gather on new year's eve and watch a slideshow that some members made of everything that we've done together as a church the past year.  It is then followed by some snacks and devotional time reflecting individually on our spiritual growth and challenges the past year and looking forward to how we would like to grow more this next year. Then we countdown by worshipping until the clock strikes 12am and then we have a huge confetti fight, cleanup, then watch a movie and have a sleepover in the church and have breakfast in the morning. 

It's a lot.

I was excited about doing this every year when I was younger but during my college years, I wasn't doing well in my faith and didn't want to participate in all the worship and self reflection. I also wasn't coming back home to church a lot so often times I wouldn't really even be in the slideshow. 

This time around, I have freshly lost my job, I'm in a pit in my faith, and I am lonely beyond measure. The slideshow this time was more appealing because I was much more involved. I got to see all the exciting activities everyone did. However, I also remembered all the times people asked me to hang out and I didn't because I was disinterested in the activities or was too tired from work -- or simply had other plans I liked more.

Watching the slideshow made me realize how much I was missing out on. Not just the activities, because I could care less about some stuff, but the pure joy and fellowship and relationship building that everyone was experiencing while doing those activities. Which is why for this next year, I am putting my relationships with people at my church first. Other activities and interests should be left aside.

And all of this isn't just for friends. I've known these people my whole life. But I don't know very much about their spiritual lives. I've only begun to truly know some people this past year. Intentional relationships built on our desire to know God and follow Him and make His Word known. By investing in these relationships, as well as building more with the other people in my church, it is my hope that I develop more of a concern for my family in Christ. That I would rejoice in their joy, mourn in their sorrow, and pray for them without ceasing because I care deeply for them. 

Empathy is something I'm trying to work on. Hopefully this helps me develop it with a Christ-centered attitude.

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