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Remember the era when people loved living in Christian community? So why not bring that way of life to a "community of churches" in which longtime members of cavernous, cathedral-type buildings open their lives and belongings to homeless churches? For decades now, God has been bringing revival to the US through immigrant church startups exploding with fearless vigor while many of our once stalwart churches continue to coddle a handful of folks each Sunday. Why not "stand on the table" and see God at work from a different vantage point? Some congregations own huge structures, others need space, we all need each other, and we can learn to share, kindergarten-style, first our passion for Jesus and his agenda, and secondly our stuff--holding the former tenderly, the latter loosely. It's all God's anyway, and will crumble without being used, so let's share it all gladly while we can! By concentrating on placing people's hands in the hand of Jesus, we can create a community of churches under one steeple, then under another steeple, then another, unlocking every room and every heart!
About the author
Lorraine Cleaves Anderson (MDiv, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary) is Senior Pastor of International Community Church (American Baptist) in Boston, where, for nearly fifteen years, numerous churches and organizations have joined ICC's "Christian community of churches."
