As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. –Proverbs 27:17
Say “Yes”
My husband has been attending Gateway Church for most of his life. For a long time, he’d wake up on Sundays, go to church, and then spend the rest of the week doing his own thing. Rinse and repeat. There was nothing glaringly wrong with it, but it wasn’t enough. Even though he had Christ in his heart, he found himself struggling secretly with sin, trying to overcome it on his own, rather than recognizing that his freedom was found in the Father’s hands.
It wasn’t until college graduation that he realized his life wasn’t what he wanted it to be. He recognized that showing up to church once a week, without healthy community, waiting for God’s promises to arrive wasn’t going to work. From that moment, he decided that he would say “yes” to every church event he was invited to—he’d find a small group, go to every worship night, attend ministry events, have a dedicated quiet time, and try out young adults.
Because of this decision, his life changed. God began growing his faith, and his relationship with Him became real and personal (1 Corinthians 3:6). He found solid friends through his small group, and he was able to surrender his brokenness and sin to the Father, where he found lasting freedom.
Faith Can’t Be Solo
His story may feel familiar. We can often believe we’re doing this Christian life “right” because we go to church and try to be good people. But then, whenever we struggle with sin or face difficult circumstances, we feel lost. The reality is that my husband’s relationship with God changed because he kept showing up and stopped trying to be a follower of Jesus alone.
Community can feel non-essential—why should we trust broken people who can hurt us? Can’t we just solo life with Jesus? The short answer: no. In Genesis 2:18 God says, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” The kind of relationship and growth the Lord designed for us from the beginning, was meant to happen in community. In the church of Acts, new believers broke bread in their homes, ate together, and met every day in the temple courts (Acts 2:46). Throughout the Bible, God paints this picture of a thriving, life-giving relationship with Him surrounded by like-minded believers!
If we’re missing community, we ought to pursue it, because we never know what God may want to do in our lives through others. Proverbs 27:17 says: "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another." Oftentimes, God uses the people around us to mature us, call us out, and deepen our relationship with Him. While finding community is just one part of a healthy Christian life, it isn’t something we should ignore, because we weren’t made to grow alone.
Additional Resources
Read Week 1: “Know God Personally”
Learn More About Groups at Gateway.
Learn More About Membership at Gateway.