Building Community In Ordinary Life
One of our Ignite youth leaders shares stories and reflections about how God has been moving in his life and the life of the youth through ordinary community settings.
Earlier this year, at Ignite we had discussions about spiritual gifts. We talked about how God has gifted us, the gifts we have been given, and how our God-given gifts fit in the church, while we used Legos to help illustrate this concept. One of the guys in my group was in awe of the fact that God created him in God’s image, all the way from when he was in his mother’s womb. It was great to hear him share his awe of how God created him, knows him, and has a plan for his life. Moments like this are the ones that make my heart joyful, seeing people understand God’s truth, how it directly applies to them, and delighting in it.
While these moments are the highlights I love to experience and share, I was also reflecting on how there are moments of community that are also important. Over the past few months, there have been many opportunities to foster community among our group, which have also been very life giving. I believe those moments are also worth celebrating. During our Spring Break Camp, one of the teenagers from Ignite came every day to help lead the campers. He has a servant’s heart and he made a lot of good connections with the children.
Another day, two of the youths and I worked together on a project. We converted a broken table into a skee ball table. It was the first time they had used a power drill, and they were both excited to learn how to use it. It reminded me of when my dad taught me how to use a power drill, and now I had the opportunity to pass it on to others.
A few weeks after that, one of my friends and I met up to get dinner. We went to the Chick-Fil-A that one of the guys works at. While we were there, we were able to see him and hear about how he’s enjoying working there and that he’s been able to start working his way up. The best part was seeing him proud of his work.
The week after, one of the leaders had a band concert and invited us all to attend. I was able to make it and thoroughly enjoyed it. The music was great, and my favorite part was watching him play the drums with passion and intensity. I enjoyed watching him play more than I enjoyed the music at times. He was glad to see me afterwards and appreciated my support.
The following week I had the honor of getting a haircut from one of the guys from our small group. He wants to become a professional barber one day and has been giving haircuts to his family and friends. We were talking about it, and he was willing to cut my hair. He invited me to his studio, and he cut my hair. During the haircut he was able to share his favorite memories from Ignite and the things he’s excited for in the future. It was a unique experience, and he did a great job cutting my hair. He was proud of his work, and it was good to pay him for a job well done.
Yes, spiritual conversations are important and life-giving. However, I also think there is something beautiful about getting to foster and build community outside of our normal gathering time. Both have been very impactful over the past several weeks and I am grateful for the opportunities God has placed before me. There have been a lot of great things happening. I am thankful for what God has allowed me to do and I am excited for what’s to come.
Matt Schrotenboer (Ignite Youth Leader)