Community

This past week, Dan, Stacia, Katie and I have started going through a book called "Spiritual Friendships," and it's been pretty incredible so far! We sat together and discussed such friendships over breakfast on Thursday, and realized that we really lack the type of friends who bring energy to our relationships with God. This was a sad, yet exciting realization for me (Bill). Sad because I realize that I've been missing out, but exciting because I realize that through open, authentic relationships with other people whose priority is living for God, I can experience intimacy with Christ.

Intimacy...what a girly sounding word. It sounds like something you should have with your wife, and that's it. I think it stinks that intimacy is something that's feminized. I desire to have men in my life who know the depths of my soul and can see through me and speak into my pain and weakness. Dan's the closest thing I've got, but we both know it can get so much better. I'm sure that there's other men out there in the world that desire intimacy, but sometimes it's just so hard to see! It's like we're trained not to want it, even though it is the very thing that our soul cries out for and NEEDS! No man is an island, but plenty of them live on one and let nobody else see anything but the coast. Well, not me. Not anymore at least. I want to experience true fellowship with other people, men and women alike, and as this happens, I want to experience God in a different way. I want my "spiritual life" to consist of more than a checklist of Bible-reading and prayer times. I want intimacy! I want community! And I want to give of myself to others!

I'd love to hear thoughts on this...so comment away!