Community

A TLS blog

In my next series of blogs, I plan to write about my experiences at Trinity Lutheran Seminary. I will be starting Greek this summer, then taking a full semester of classes beginning in late August. This will be a very new and challenging experience for me, and there's going to be plenty to write about.






Every Wednesday evening, the families that live in the Trinity Seminary apartments have a community dinner. Each family grills their own meat and brings a side item to share with the group. It's a very simple idea, yet it holds so much goodness and power. We gather and talk. We cook. We drink. We eat some burgers. We relax and enjoy a nice, summer evening. Our kids play together. Even when we don't feel like being 'social,' we gather. We gather, not because it's required—we gather because we need each others' company and support.

I'm always cautious about how and when I use the word 'blessing,' but I have to say that it's been a real blessing to live with this group of fellow believers who are committing their lives to church ministry. It's a blessing to share housing in a close-knit community. It's a blessing just to share food every Wednesday evening.

And so we gather. We usually don't even talk about God or church or anything like that. We gather and just let the community presence help us. While many people in life withdraw and resist opening their lives to others, I've been reminded that community and friendship are so important. We need this. We were created for this.