40 Days of Community - Created for Community

Day 2
I am excited about what God is going to do as we focus on community for 40 days. I truly believe that if we are willing to live in real Christian community that the struggles of life will not defeat us. We can overcome any obstacle when we live life together. Ecclesiastes 3:12 says, "A cord of three strands is not easily broken." This reminds us that when we stand alone we are not as strong as when we are woven together with others.
This idea of being better together can be a new mindset for most of us. For most of our life we have been encouraged to be independent. It is time to get out on my own, to take care of myself, and to stand on my own two feet. Our country was founded on the Declaration of Independence. We are told it is weak to depend on other people.
This is different than God's teaching. The Bible does not teach us to be independent, but rather interdependent. We are taught in the Scriptures and through the life of Jesus to depend on God and depend on one another. We were created for community, not created for independence.
This means we need to open ourselves up to those around us. We need to be willing to share our struggles and let people know when we need help. We also need to be willing to help when others are in need.
Right now what I see happening is that people are struggling with loneliness, depression, financial situations, broken relationships (especially marriages), and many other situations. They are struggling and because they want to be independent they will not share their need for a community to lift them up. At the same time, we do not have a close enough relationship with that person to know the struggles in their lives.
We need to work on creating a community where we know each other. Where we are open with each other and trust each other. This will weave us together into a strong cord that will not be broken. Then we all will be a community that will hold each other up when facing struggles.
This will not happen overnight, but I believe it is a great goal to pursue. It starts with you, and it can start today. Will you join me in declaring our interdependence?

P.S.
If you actually read the Declaration of Independence you will find in the last line a declaration of dependence on God and each other. "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor."