A man from the north was traveling on business in the deep south and found a little greasy spoon of a restaurant right by his hotel. He was excited to order a greasy, full breakfast and not have his wife bug him about his high cholesterol. As he was deciding what to order he saw that everything on the menu came with grits. There was nothing you could get that didn't have grits accompanying it. He had never been sure about what grits really are made of, so he asked the person serving him, "What exactly is a grit?" This waitress was not a good listener and she thought he wanted to order just grits. Her response was, "Honey, they don't come by themselves. That's just the way grits are. A grit doesn't come by itself. They come in community."
Human beings are like grits. We have all been impacted by others. We don’t come by ourselves. You are who you are because there have been people who have touched your life -- parents, neighbors, friends and teachers. There has been a whole community of people, and you carry them around inside of you. Some touched you for the better, and you are very grateful as you think about them right now. Some may have done some damage along the way. You're not here by yourself nor do you get here by yourself. Then there is the whole, little world of people who are going to be touched by you. There are friends and coworkers. Some of them may be embraced and built up by you, and some of them may be hurt a bit by you. Your life and actions will touch all kinds of human beings. You didn't get here on your own, and neither did anybody else. God made us that way. He said that it is not good for human beings to experience the oppressing, isolating aloneness that wounds the heart. God made one human being and said, "They don't come by themselves." You and I were created for community. You were made to have intimate relationships, serve people lavishly, share the stuff that you have, build into the lives of the people around you, have people to whom you entrust the secrets of your heart and to laugh, praise, pray and cry with other human beings. You are made for community.
It is why we have small groups at Westbrook. Small groups are the place where you can live in community. Everyone needs a small group of people that know our name and know our story. If you are not in a small group would you consider joining one this fall? We even have ones that are short term so you can test the waters of small groups. You will be glad you did. You weren’t made to do life alone. You only come in community!
Click on this link to see new small groups this fall.
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