Guest Blogging/Community Brew Link-up

Good morning Ya'll!! 

Today I am guest blogging over at Peach State of Mind while my dear friend Lauren is on her Honeymoon! I am so happy for her that she found the man of her dreams and now they can enjoy marital bliss! I love marriage! 

On my guest post I am excited to share some of my favorite dates that my husband and I have been on! Many of them are simple but they were all SO fun! We love having creative dates and I hope it inspires you to dream up some creative date ideas with you and your hubs. 

I am also linking up with Madison and Rachel today for their Community Brew Link-up! This link-up is designed to create open, honest, and vulnerable friendships and to create community. What an awesome idea! I just love these two ladies and their hearts! It has been an absolute privilege to get to know them over the last year and I am excited to see our friendship grow even more!

This link-up is designed to create open, honest, and vulnerable friendships and to create community. What an awesome idea! 

Today's topic is COMMUNITY. 

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
¹⁰ If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.
¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
    But how can one keep warm alone?
¹² Though one may be overpowered,
    two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

What does community mean to you? 

To me, community is about doing life with each other. It is about creating authentic and meaningful relationships and friendships with people you can trust and rely on in all seasons of life. At our church our small groups are actually called community groups because of this exact topic. It is SO important to have meaningful relationships in your life. It is so important to have people you can turn to for accountability and wisdom as well as just people you enjoy spending time with. Community is creating an environment where all feel welcome and most importantly feel the love of Christ! How cool is that picture?!! 

Why is it hard to pursue community or open up to others?

I think community can be hard sometimes because you have to be real, open and vulnerable. That is scary sometimes! What if these people betray your trust? It is a risk you take when forming community. One thing that I have learned is that there are different layers to community. For example, we are apart of a community group through our church. In that group we have men and women, we all get together each week to discuss the sermon from the last Sunday and spend time together. (One layer) At the end of our group time we split off in men and women to dig deeper and pray together. This is because men and women are different. Women struggle with different things than men do and it is often easier to be more vulnerable with your same sex, besides your spouse. (Second layer) During the week there are people that I meet with one-on-one that I have deeper friendship with. We know each other really well and discuss certain specific topics regarding marriage, sex, Jesus, work and church. (Third Layer) I think this makes community less scary because I do not discuss personal things about our marriage in [layer one] but I will discuss things about our marriage in [layer three] because it is one-on-one accountability and encouragement. 

What does it look like to "live in community" with other believers and non believers?

I kind of answered this in the question above but I think it means to invite, invite, invite!! Invite others into your life and into community with you! Spend time with them getting to know who they are, what they believe and why they believe that. It is so important to build relationships with people you are in community with! I think this also includes non believers! Get to know them on a deeper level before you start to share Jesus with them. Get to know their back story, about their family, job, and their dreams. Then you can start to share about Jesus with them. Community needs to have roots. It can't just be friendships that are going to last for a brief period of time!

Why is community important to you?

Community is important for me because it is one of the most significant ways that my husband and I grow in our relationship with Jesus. We also feel that God commands us to be in community and want to follow His Word and what He is calling us to. 

What does it look like to love your neighbor?

I think this means being Jesus with skin on. That sounds weird I know but it is so true! It means showing Christs love to those around you even if they are not in your circle. It means inviting others into your community and sharing with them the joys and struggles of life. It means sacrificing, loving, giving and serving everyone around you. 

 I am SO excited about this link-up and the opportunity to build community with other bloggers from all over the world! Thanks so much for stopping by! I would love to chat with you anytime!

I would also like to give a shout-out to the girls from the What You Wish Wednesdays! I am linking up with them as well today! 

Have a beautiful day!