It is often that we find ourselves in difficult times. Things challenge our life in many different ways that make the daily grind less pleasant. I frequently find that things weigh heavy on my mind or my health that makes daily life harder than it needs to be. In our times of quick fixes and pills for whatever ails you, we wish that there was always a simple solution. This simple solution is often nothing more than a pipe dream though. Perhaps not so surprisingly, God has offered a solution. For most things that ail the mind or body, God has provided an answer. I will leave out the obvious choice in prayer. For this option is more of the passive nature. Prayer often comforts the mind and through no control of your own, at times brings the solution. My answer is in another gift that God has provided. God has provided the gift of community.
Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. Galatians 6:2
As a community and as a church community, we have a responsibility to support one another. This support can come in many different forms. From a helping hand in a project to a friend who will listen. This support is what gets us through the difficult times. Dishonest is the person who claims to never have been uplifted by the hand of a friend. Often, it is that very support that put us back in a place of comfort. The sense of community also shows its face in natural law. Since the dawn of man, we have gathered in the collective to provide physical and moral support to one another. It is indeed the weakness of humans that give them their greatest strength. As a community, we can weather the storms of nature in relative comfort. As a community, we can temper the pain that the loss of a loved one brings. As a community, we can build structures that seem to extend to the clouds. No individual can live in relative comfort on their own.
If a man were to be stripped to nothing but what he came into this world with, and was told to live, he would be doing what we call surviving. Without the support of others, he would have a lean-to shelter with some leaves to keep the rain out. He would have a fire to keep warm. He may have traps to catch wild game, but mostly would survive on berries. On the other hand, if a man was in a similar situation, but now had a community to support him. He would eventually have tools, and a permanent shelter, and specializations would begin to develop. Each member would have to work less to have the same benefits. It is for this very reason that communities are so successful. God's word supports community as does the natural law. It is often when we need the community most, that it appears least as the answer.
When we are depressed, ashamed, and ill, we find ourselves seeking isolation. We attempt to "man up" and pull ourselves up by the boot strap. In fact, the best medicine is to run to the community that can and will ease the burden. God provided this community for a reason. We would all do well to be good supports of the community and, when necessary, good seekers of the communities benefits.
