It has been on my heart lately that many people attend Ren but for whatever reason feel on the outside looking on. The visual that comes to mind is a circle within a circle. In the inner circle at Ren there seems to be a depth of connection and care that is spectacular. But for those in that outer circle it's a different experience. I want to say a few things to those in the outer circle.
Now I know that some of you want to be in the outer circle because you are still just checking everything out. That's understandable. Others stay on the fringe because they are not Christian yet. That is understandable too but if that's you I encourage you to draw closer. Don't think you have to have everything figured out. We won't be shocked at your questions about the faith or that you aren't yet Christian. In fact, we love spending time with people who are curious. A great number of people at Ren fall into a category of feeling on the outside but don't want to be. Maybe that's you. And it's this that I want to speak to primarily.
Because of the size of our community it's very difficult to feel deeply connected by just attending Sunday especially if you come only a couple times a month or less. Sunday is a 90 minute experience and is mostly you sitting in a seat and taking in what happens up in the front. That's not to say Sunday is bad. Sunday is essentially a time of celebration, worship and hearing the Word of God to unify the church. It's very important and I personally put enormous effort into the message each week because the anointed Word can transform us! But that said, simple Sunday attending won't lead to depth of relationships in the church.
So what do you do? How can you move from feeling on the outside to being a part of the inner core of the church where care and connection run deep? There are dozens of smaller teams and groups at Ren. I think an important step is to be part of at least 1-2 of these. For example, on Sundays there are teams that serve together ushering, welcoming, caring for kids, making coffee and so on. There is a team that works together on the occasional community meals. Being part of one of these is a great way to develop connections.
There are also a number of different small gatherings like young adults, men, women, young couples, as well as, a mid-week prayer gathering. There are all sorts of gatherings happening at all different times with the aim of trying to provide something for everyone. Some groups are more focused on local mission like serving the homeless, the youth or the neighborhood. So there are groups that emphasize prayer, some that focus on Bible study and others that focus on serving the city. We try to provide a myriad of options to choose from.
You may wonder about the details of all these smaller teams and gatherings. Many of them are listed on our website and we try to highlight 1-2 each Sunday. But please know we are more than happy to help you find the best team and/or group for you. Becky Plante is on staff specifically working to help people find their place in the community. I am also glad to help in this as much as I can.
My last thought is to give it time to feel connected. It's important to take steps into being a part of teams or groups but even when you do it takes time to get to know people. There's no substitute for just being with the same people regularly. Over time trust is developed and you open up more and more. You won't have chemistry with everyone. You may even have tensions or conflicts with some people. All this is part of being a family. It takes work. So take some steps and work at it. The beautiful result is that you'll soon find yourself in the inner circle and experiencing a stronger current of spiritual enrichment. I can say confidently that God wants all of us to be in the inner circle where the blessings abound.