Giving Grace in Community

While considering the two types of loyalty that I have observed in others, how do we find true community? Do I let every friendship that doesn’t perfectly align with me fizzle out? Do I need to put in the work to find more friends who align with my mission and values?

These are complex and deeply personal questions because we choose community and no one is a perfectly loyal friend. Everybody is evolving all of the time. With this comes, beauty and struggle; so how do we choose who to “stick it out with?”

Community is relationships. We can’t control who people are or how they respond but, we are accountable for ourselves. How we show up in relationships will often answer these tough questions for us. Tomorrow, we will talk about two examples of Jesus “showing up” and how people responded to him, but first, let’s be accountable for how we show up in the world.

Calibration:
- What are your values?
- Do you hold true to those values with, and without your community present?
- How often are you honest with your friends even if it’s uncomfortable?
- How well do you listen to your friends?
- How often do you abandon yourself and your needs to “be a friend?”
- Are you willing to be wrong and apologize sincerely?