Fresh Wells of Community

In the past, women's ministries usually did not fill my cup. I got married later in life, and most of the women’s events I have attended spend a lot of time ministering to the underappreciated wives and mothers struggling to feel a sense of value. While I understood the need for this type of ministry, nothing is worse than being a single thirty-five year old, and hearing wives complain about their marriages.

Needless to say, I developed the habit of finding wells of community outside of the normal women’s meetings. Fast forward, and I am now happily married and a step-mom to an amazing teen. I still feel like I am in the honeymoon phase of marriage, as I have only been married three and a half years and our teen is not perfect but unusually grateful.

My habit of shying away from normal women’s gatherings has not changed. If you have been following my posts, you know God has been highlighting community. I am doing my best to be a doer of the word, not just a hearer. My church’s women’s conference was coming up so I registered.

In line for the event, I struck up a conversation with a spunky and loveable lady. My new friend and I bonded naturally and I quickly learned that her husband of eighteen years left her a month ago. To make matters worse, he left her because she had some health issues and he, “did not sign up to be with someone sickly.” This women’s conference was her first outing, outside of her normal activities, since he left. 

My dear sister, was hurting but came to the house of the Lord. She shared that she knew she hadn’t completely surrendered this life changing disappointment to the Lord yet. I do not fault her as I imagine I would still be in a state of shock! She earnestly tried to make the marriage work for years and felt like he threw her away like a piece of trash at the first opportunity.

At the end of the first day, the worship leader interrupted her singing to encourage someone in the audience to surrender their disappointment about their failed marriage to the Lord! My new friend and I locked eyes. We knew who God was encouraging.

The next day the speaker was a sassy New Yorker, known for commissioning women to stop complaining and get busy with the work of the Kingdom. My kind of speaker! By the prompting of Holy Spirit the speaker interrupted her message to say she felt someone was in the audience who felt like they had been easily discarded. Every word was directly associated with what my friend was experiencing. The obedience of the worship leader and speaker to be sensitive to Holy Spirit ministered in a powerful way. I am beyond happy that my friend got nurtured. The conference was like a love letter from God in a time of extreme rejection.

I also noticed the work of the Lord in my heart. The very comments that would normally seem irrelevant to my life were like shots of adrenaline to my soul. 

Isn't that how intimate community works? In a corporate setting you can consciously appreciate that the message is surely meeting someone’s need even if you do not feel fulfilled. In intimate community you are fully aware of the life changing encounter. You know exactly who is being delivered, encouraged, corrected, or directed while cheering the preacher, receiver, and Holy Spirit on. Each experience reminds you that God is near and active in the lives of those who love Him. You are not just reminded, but assured, that when your cup is empty it will be filled.