shall we gather?

I sat around the table with friends the other night celebrating four years of relationship. No one in the room knew the others prior to five years ago, but the Lord planted us solidly in each other's lives and it’s been a sweet time.

We reminisced about the beginnings of our dinners and how each person had been added. We are an unlikely group, but the love runs deep.

Community. 

Fellowship.

Unity.

Words we hear and aspire to, but that can often seem elusive. 

About five and a half years ago, the Lord planted an idea in my mind. I’m a gatherer of people. I know it’s not a specific spiritual gift in the list, but I’m claiming it as one! And after all, at least a part time job for the Holy Spirit is to convict and call people to the Father. The Holy Spirit is a ‘gatherer’ of people to join God’s family. So I’ve leaned more into this gift of mine as the years have passed.

Randomly, which describes many of my thoughts, the idea popped into my mind to gather believers in our area who were wrestling with sexual or gender identity issues. 

Gather them for dinner and conversation. 

Gather them for fellowship and encouragement.

Gather them because we need each other to walk well.

Gather a chosen family to support each other.

I remember my son joking with me that my idea for gathering might prove challenging. I was stymied on how to accomplish what it seemed the Lord was prompting me to do, but just began to pray. Certainly if He was the originator of the idea, He would provide the way.

And He did.

One person at a time.

The first young woman I invited was my ‘fleece’. I prayed on the way to meet her for coffee that if the Lord was wanting these dinners to happen, then this stranger that I was about to meet would also think it was a good plan! After all, Abraham’s servant prayed a similar prayer when heading to find a wife for Isaac :)

We all smiled as we remembered the addition of each personality around the table. A variety of ages, sexes, and places in life, but a common desire to grow in Godliness- together.

I’ve realised more and more as I get older, that community, genuine community, does not require people similar to my age. It does not require people with like  interests or similar backgrounds. Certainly those things make friendships easier at times. But what we’ve all brought to the table is a desire to be together, and a commitment to each other.

A commitment to friendship.

Who could you gather? Who around you needs community and intimacy? 

The church is often a hard place for single people, single for whatever reason, to find meaningful family type connections. Intimacy. Relational commitment. The long haul together.

If we call people to a costly gender and sexual ethic, we need to provide family in real ways.

We are image bearers, and our Father is one who draws people into His presence, into the space beside Himself. We work alongside Him in this precious job.