I’m sitting on a footstool holding Lucy as still as I possibly can. If I move her leg at all she starts crying. As we sit together my mind races. My daughter’s leg is probably broken and I find myself sitting in the one place on earth no one wants to be during a global pandemic, with my pregnant wife, the UK Emergency Room.
The fear and anxiety of the unknown was almost too much to bear.
When I reflect back on 2020, more specifically life during the pandemic, I’m overcome with immense gratitude. In many ways, our visit to the ER could have been a sign of things to come… fear, anxiety, loneliness, etc. But that wasn’t the case for our family.
As the world shut down, one of our House Fellowship communities decided to continue meeting. We covenanted with one another, to watch over one another in love, so that we could continue meeting. In many ways, this meant laying aside personal preferences for the sake of the community. Even as things “opened up” we have continued our commitment to one another, essentially not doing things outside our regular responsibilities or what’s needed to survive (Trader Joe’s is a necessity right?)!
My point? Fear, anxiety, and loneliness did not have the last word. Instead, we witnessed the miracle, and power, of church as “family”. As a community we found contentment in simplicity, peace in the face of fear, and joy as we gathered around the risen Jesus.
I love how Eugene Peterson translates Ephesians 2:19-22…
You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home. (Eph. 2:19-22)
So how did we have contentment, peace, and joy? “God is building a home” and he using “us all” to build it! This home is being built into “a temple in which God is quite at home.” Church as “family” means being part of something bigger than ourselves. It’s about helping build a home in which the risen Jesus reigns. We had contentment, peace, and joy because we helped lead each other into the presence of Jesus. In His home fear, anxiety, and loneliness disappear.
I am not claiming 2020 was the easiest year. There were many difficulties, not seeing family or being able to do normal activities, and it certainly was not easy navigating having a newborn in the midst of all the craziness! But what I know to be true is that I can honestly say this year has been a blessing to me and my church family.
As I type this I understand this year has been extremely difficult for some of you. So I’m not writing this to boast, but to point to the power of church as family and to encourage you to seek similar communities. Left to ourselves we are “wandering exiles”. With each other we can experience the actual risen Jesus.
It’s been just over a year since we sat in the ER. But what’s amazing is that during the pandemic God spoke to us. He stirred our hearts to plant new church families in St. Louis. As we plan and look ahead our future is still uncertain. We don’t know how things will unfold in St. Louis. But what we do know, from our story this past year, is that God works powerfully through his Church. Our testimony is one of many from our church family in Wilmore. Our prayer is that people will come to experience what true church family can be.
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