Toward the end of WWII, a group of American soldiers carried
the bodies of their fallen comrade to a nearby cemetery for burial. They were
greeted by a priest who let them know he could not bury their friend in the
cemetery because it was a Catholic cemetery and their friend was not Catholic.
Disappointed, the soldiers carried their friend to a nice spot just outside the
fence wanting to get him as close as possible to the sacred ground. There they
dug a small grave and buried him following a humble ceremony. The following day
when the soldiers returned to pay their final respects, they were surprised
that they could not find their friends grave. After a brief search they went
looking for the priest to inquire about what happened to the grave. The priest
enlightened them, “After you left I spent the first half of the night feeling
sorry for what I told you, and the send half I spent moving the fence.”
Me
to We is about belonging. There is a ME part to belonging and also a WE part. Belonging
is part acceptance and part commitment. Belonging begins with being accepted
but you don’t fully belong until you commit to the group that accepted you.
It means you commit to becoming as more concerned about others belonging as you
are about belonging.
It
means you commit to trusting God’s people in the same way you trust Him and
submit to them like you submit to Him.
It
means submitting to the mission of the church even when that means you move
some fences and soften some boundaries to allow you to open up to people who
aren’t like you.
Do you want to make the move from “Me to We”? Then you
will want to take some of the following steps:
·
Get involved in a LIFE Group
·
Find someone to mentor or shepherd
·
Sign up for a membership class and take the
step to join
·
Get better acquainted with
someone you don’t know well in the church
·
If you know someone who has trouble belonging
and help them.
·
Look for a need in the church and commit to serve
there
·
Find something completely out of your comfort
zone and tackle it
When a church can make the
shift from ME to WE, we can see people of every race and class and social
strata coming together community to worship and serve. When the shift happens
belonging is easy and fellowship is real and people feel safe.
Are there some fences you need to move?
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