As I sit outside on one of the most gorgeous days that I have seen in awhile I am surrounded by people that are in genuine community with one another. There are real and honest conversations going on and I am reminded of the beauty of just being present with those around us. What does it really mean to find and keep community with those we love? What would we be without other people to interact with? Why is it so important to have our faces buried in our phones while the whole entire world passes us by because we are too involved with seeing who has liked what and how many likes we have? When did the world we live in become so circumstantial and based on popularity that we seek that instead of real and true conversations? Why does a conversation have to be a text message? Is it really and truly just easier to text someone something or what if we each took the time to call and have a real conversation with each other every once in awhile? So much can be read into something we write when perhaps the way we took it had a completely different connotation. How much do we assume of a situation or of a person by just thinking we know about what it is that we perceive?
The beauty and comfort we all find in genuine community with each other is something that each of us want and need to keep us in a good mental and happy place. We were made to be around and with other people. If we try to just exist all alone and with no one around we easily slip into the world of doubt and questions as to what our purpose is in life. It is a question that I have asked myself many a time and the answer always seems to find its way to me just when I need it most. The answer usually comes in some form from one of my friends or a family member. When everything seems to fail us, knowing that a community of people that surround us and want what is best for us when the world we live in seems to say the exact opposite can make or break a person. I know that I would be absolutely nothing without my friends and church family that stand by me through thick and thin. The world we live in and life are hardly ever fair. Then again God never said that life would be easy. He did promise though that we would never walk alone. The need of being in communion with others is real and wanted by many. How many times a day though do we fill that void with social media and pictures of the latest and greatest thing that we have acquired? I being one of the many that does just that. What is it that draws out that want and desire to do just that. I find myself asking why and when did it become so important to be so well liked and noticed? Is it really what it’s cracked up to be?
Why should it matter whether or not my friends online know where I have been or what it is that I have eaten that day? Am I adding to the the league of people staring at the screen in their hands instead of talking to the people in front of them? I know that I survived quite well before social media became a way in which the world turns. I would say things were much easier and people had more time to pick up the phone and talk or actually meet up for a cup of coffee rather then meet for coffee and stare at their screens all morning. Trust me, I see it happen a lot!
Investing and taking time out of the oh so busy day can be one of life’s biggest challenges and I do not always do what I say. I forget that there are people right in front of me and I become one of many that is guilty of looking to see what the latest and greatest thing it was that my friend just posted. Time is short and people are worth the time and effort to be invested in a true sense of community when we let it. It is time to take a moment and connect with those you value and love. I am taking my own advice as is this is a place that I am not always great at. Time is precious and many times a person’s time on earth is cut all too short. Make the time for the memories and moments that you will hold dear for the rest of your life. Take the time to really and truly talk and in turn listen to each person that is in your life. Forgive easily and love whole heartedly. Learn from those around you and know that each day is a day to be the change, make a difference, and inspire others when you least expect it.