Episode 44 - What is a Church Community?

We explore how real church community forms beyond Sunday, why accountability grows best in small circles, and how to stay on mission with friends outside the church while staying rooted in fellowship. Practical next steps include text groups, coffee meetups, mentors, and creating simple on-ramps for belonging.

• defining church as a community of believers, not a building
• practicing the one anothers through fellowship and small groups
• balancing mission friendships with a strong church anchor
• moving from content consumption to relational connection
• organic accountability that feels like care, not policing
• finding a Paul, investing in a Timothy, welcoming a Barnabas
• simple starts: coffee, texts, weekly breakfasts, shared meals
• giving space for the Holy Spirit through consistent presence
• invitation to gather locally and build weekly rhythms

If you're in Rockdale on a Sunday, come on by. We do coffee and donuts and fellowship at 10 o'clock and service starts at 11:30. We have a nursery, we have children's church, and we'll be at the American Legion Hall right now in Rockdale. So come join us if you get a chance.

Transcript

Welcome And Global Reach

SPEAKER_02 0:09

Welcome to Let's Connect, the official podcast of Connect Church in Rockdale, Texas, where we want to help you to live a life that matters. One that is both on mission and has a purpose to follow Jesus and make disciples. So let's get started.

SPEAKER_01 0:42

Ken, how are you doing today? I'm good. I'm here. I'm good.

SPEAKER_00 0:46

I'm with you, so we're all good.

What Church Community Really Means

SPEAKER_01 0:48

So we always do this, but man, this is like perfect weather time. I mean, just perfect weather time. It's not too hot, it's not too cold, nobody can really complain. You know, I say that, yeah, tongue in cheek, because nobody can always find a reason to complain. Yeah. This is uh podcast number 44 for us. Um we're actually gonna hit a year before we actually hit 52 because we did take a one week off when I was gone, and during the holidays we took some time off. So but it's almost been a year. Um and and we've had some really good feedback. I've had a lot of people that stop me that know me when I'm like at my parents' church or something, not in our church, but in someone else's church, and that's really cool to me because that means we're we're we're not just a one-church podcast, but we're actually reaching other people outside of the area, and so it's pretty wonderful. And like I said, this is episode 44. We are located right here in Rockdale, Texas, but we can reach the world with this. And and we have hit some folks in other countries. I mean, just last week we had two or three hits from uh Columbia. So we're not even speaking Spanish. So it's pretty cool that we're able to touch to you know touch folks like that. I wonder who that is. I don't know, I have no idea, but it but it's pretty cool that that that we're able to reach out there and touch folks. And so I hope everybody's enjoying it. I hope they're getting something out of it. Um and uh, you know, it's our it's our purpose to uh do just what we say at our church is to uh become disciples and and make disciples and reach out there and touch people's lives in a positive manner. So one of the things that we have talked about, you've talked about on Sunday, we've talked about in Bible study, we we we've done some of it ourselves, is the concept of community in the church and the talk that you know church is not just a building, it's a it's a community of believers. And so this week, um I've been taking notes pretty much all week as I'm uh out and about doing my duties because um somebody asked me, and I think it was Monday, when someone asked me if they had listened to one of our podcasts and we had actually talked about it, but we didn't get into depth any kind of depth on it. Um what does that mean, the concept of community in the church? And uh I understand it in my heart. I understand it, but man, to get caught off guard with that question and and and try to come up with that 10-word answer, it's um you know, it's kind of difficult. I just told her, you know, look, it's a it's a concept where your church and the people that you go to church with that make up your church, that's your community. That that that's who you're with. And uh I don't know if if you have a better definition. No, keep going. I'm listening, yeah. And so her next question came up was, uh well, you know, I I do go to church and and and and she goes to a church um up up on the north side of the county. It's a little church, and um but she told me, she said, but I I really don't hang out with any of the people I go to church with. And I asked her, you know, are you a member of that church? And she said, Well, well uh she said this is this is this is um it was interesting to me. I I don't want to laugh about it because it's it's one of those things, and we talked about this for a while, and I told her I was gonna talk about this this week. This is a great topic because I told her, I said, you know, you're probably never not the only one that that that wonders this kind of stuff. And and um, you know, she she said she really doesn't hang out with anybody at her church or do anything with it. And I said, Well, that's what you're looking for in a in a church community, and that community of believers is those people that that become, you know, your community, the the circle of people that you do things with. And and her next question to me was, and then and you can run with it for a little bit, is is uh does that mean I can't have friends that aren't in that circle or that are non-Christians? You know?

SPEAKER_00 5:08

Yeah. Well, the the Greek word would be, I think, koinia, right? Fellowship. When we think of the word community, we should think of fellowship. Uh it's where we would practice the one another's, right? All the one another's that are listed in scripture. And yeah, Sunday we're gonna think together about this, how God has put the church together, the church is uh a group, uh, the called out ones, and uh and and in that we form a community, right? We are in fellowship with one another, and then we practice love, serving, uh, sharing each other's burdens, things like that. And yeah, and and within that we're gonna have we're gonna have people that influence our lives, right? Iron sharpens iron, yada yada yada, and yeah, to answer her question. No, I mean you're gonna you're gonna be part of our job is to bring others into that community, right? As we share the gospel. One of the things we're gonna think about Sunday is we all need to have woman at the well type people, demoniac, you know, people that are far from God that we're having gospel conversations with, and hopefully they would acknowledge Christ as Lord and Savior, and then we bring them into the community of God, right? The church.

Can Christians Keep Non-Christian Friends

SPEAKER_01 6:23

I think it's it's that it's that don't and we have talked about this and and it's something that a lot of us do and I think most everybody does from time to time probably is it's it's easy to kind of hide who you want to be, hide who you are. Um because somebody may not like that may not like the fact that you're a Christian or that you believe this way. And if you're gonna have those friends that are that are still non-believers or non-Christians, or maybe just simply they're they're a Christian but they're not going to church or something, those are the folks you need at most to have that knowledge that you are a Christian. You know, uh I think I don't know, it's been a long time ago, and you said something to the effect of the best thing that somebody can think about you is that you know, when they say something about you, oh yeah, that guy's a Christian. Yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah, he's definitely a Christian, you know. And and I I think for a lot of people they get in that social situation and they're a lot of us become afraid that that person may not like me if if I'm too religious, if I'm too much of this. And that that's where you need that that group, that community, that Christian community that you're in. That's your community. Yeah, and yeah, you need you know you don't cut people off because they're not there, or you don't cut people off because maybe they're living a a sinful lifestyle. But you need to be that example to them.

SPEAKER_00 8:01

Yeah, I think I mean I've said it a hundred times that two things really missing from the church, and you just mentioned one of them to me, uh, is is community and accountability, and those two run together, I think, that when you're in fellowship with people. I mean, right, we have we see in we see in scripture, we see big church and little church, right? We see big gatherings of people, you know, we might call that Sunday morning worship where everybody's in the sanctuary together, and you know that's that's the big number, and then we have small groups, right? That we that are smaller communities of faith within the the larger church, and that's where we we practice uh confessing our sins to one another. Um we we I mean in Acts two, we we that's where we would probably share needs if you know we we saw them selling property and and taking, you know, somebody needs their light bill paid, uh, you know, somebody might sell something and help pay that. Like in it's in those pockets where we can be vulnerable and accountability should be organic and natural versus hey, did you watch something on TV today you shouldn't have, you know? I mean, that's the old school accountability group stuff. But yeah, it that those things are so important. And I just I met a guy in Brim this morning and he was telling me how people want community, not content. And then you were just talking about breaking down, you know, having some small text groups or even groups that get together and go have coffee. Right. That would be community that doesn't necessarily have any content per per se. It could, like you said, but but it's got it's got the community feature, and there's nothing wrong with us getting to hang out to hang together, right? Go drink coffee, five or six of us go drink coffee or have breakfast. We don't have to break out our Bibles. We're there because we have a relationship with Christ, and so He's the center, even if we even if we just talk about sports or the weather or whatever. Yeah, yeah.

Fellowship, Accountability, And The “One Anothers”

SPEAKER_01 10:05

I mean, you know, it's um and and and I mentioned that because I had heard, you know, um somebody else say on another on another podcast, you know, one of the things that they instituted that's a terrible word to say, but or or or put forth in their church was the concept of, hey, why don't you you know to create these groups? You know, you can do it formally and a lot of churches will say, hey, sign up for small groups and we'll assign you to a group. But I mean just his idea was to have each individual think of four or five people, maybe ten people or so that that you're that you're friends with in the church or that you're friendly with in the church that you would like to have a have a closer relationship and just say, Hey, uh, I'm gonna be at the coffee shop here on this day at eight o'clock in the morning, if y'all would like to join me, please come. Maybe, maybe, maybe one shows up, maybe all the ones you you you texted show up.

SPEAKER_00 10:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:59

And like you said, it it doesn't have to be a Bible study because you know, while it's important to have Bible studies, while it's important to have those moments where you're in in some sort of a prayer group or something like that, it's also important to spend those everyday moments together. You know, one of the things, and and we've one of the things that always kind of it almost makes me sad is when people leave church on Sundays and there's two things they say is is hey, have a great week. Like I'm not gonna see you till next Sunday, or see you next week. See you next week. You know, it's like, man, you know, I hear it every Sunday. Yeah. And it and it and it's one of those things that you know, it's like, man, okay, yeah, what do we do to change that? You know, uh and and and one of the things it's kind of a small thing, but it's something I think we do pretty well, and that a lot of folks could do is just a text group. I mean, that's a great way to start things off, you know. What we we the that concept of, you know, okay, I go to church here, but the rest of the week I'm gonna be over here and I'll see everybody next Sunday. And and then you kind of go out and now you're with those you you your your non-church community friends, which I'm not saying you can't have friends that aren't in your church community, because sometimes that's how you bring them into the church community, sure. Is to be that example, but to to not have that community is where we miss the boat, you know? Oh yeah. I'm not gonna be dictatorial and say you gotta be community with your church all week long. Uh-uh. But I think when we don't do that, we do ourselves a disservice and we kind of miss the boat on what could be a a really good uh way to to walk closer with God.

SPEAKER_00 12:48

Well, and we're missing out on, we're talking about relationships and we're missing out on critical relationships that help us grow closer to to God. Sunday we're gonna think about we all need a more mature, right? We need a Paul type person in our life.

SPEAKER_01 13:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 13:02

Uh for me, my experience is those those people come through the church for me. Like I met the only guy that's really ever discipled me, besides my parents, you know, like just doing what you're talking about, sought me out and said, Hey, let's do coffee every week and poured into me. Uh, I mean, I met him at church. Um, you know, the Timothies that I've gotten to invest in for the most part, not always, but for the most part, they were people that I met at church. You know, we did we've done fight clubs like groups of three men meet every week. Um, those are guys that typically not always, but I've met at church. And so uh yeah, so w how are we gonna have those relationships that build us up and and uh unless it happens through church? And you know what's crazy is I'll see like a Yeti ad, you know, uh an ad for a Yeti cooler or a tumbler or whatever, or like Howler Brothers, and it that shows these guys sitting around a fire, you know, they're usually holding a beer or something, but uh, you know, got an ice chest there. Uh they've been fly fishing or surfing, and like they're having a good time. And I'm like, why doesn't the church look like that? I mean, maybe minus the beer if that offends somebody, but so if you're offended by that, I mean just take that out and just imagine they're holding a big red or pepper zero. Yeah, yeah. Why we just don't do that very well, do we? It it it it's almost like like I want to tap into that and no no pun there.

Community Over Content: Small Groups And Coffee

SPEAKER_01 14:43

But it's almost like it's almost like church has become such a formal relationship and not it over the years it had lost that just that normal social relationship. You know, I I and and it and it happened somewhere between that age group of our grandparents down to us. I remember, you know, m my grandfather always went on fishing trips when he would go fishing. I remember going fishing, and it was either his brother-in-law who lived down in Victoria, or two of the other gentlemen that we went to church with, and and and uh one was on the deacon board with him and one wasn't. And uh we would go fishing and and they would take their grandsons and we would all go fishing. And yeah and and uh you know I I I was thinking about it this week, and I don't really remember either one of my grandfathers having friends that weren't people that they went to church with. Yeah. You know, and and I'm not saying you have to, you know, because we have guys that come to our Bible study that don't go to church with us, they go to another church, and we love that. That's a great lesson.

SPEAKER_00 15:56

I go to coffee and eat lunch with a couple of them on a later basis.

SPEAKER_01 16:00

And that's great. You know, there's a couple of people over in the other town on the north side of the county that you don't like me to mention. But over there, uh there's a couple of guys and they go to First Baptist in Cameron and we go have coffee.

SPEAKER_00 16:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:12

About once a week, we'll walk across the street from the courthouse and go into the coffee shop and sit in there and we'll talk. And uh so it it, you know, I'm not saying you have to exclude yourself just to the community of in the church that you're in.

SPEAKER_00 16:24

No.

SPEAKER_01 16:25

However, it's important that that church community that you are in, that you have those relationships with those folks that you're in there with.

SPEAKER_00 16:34

I think it's super important. And yeah, I don't it it may be our our parents or grandparents' generation that that somehow we got derailed on that. I mean, I can't think of anything better than hanging out with your church. Yeah. Your church people. I mean, what's better than that? Right. And those are the people you're doing life with, supposedly.

SPEAKER_01 16:55

Yeah, it is. And and it that that that should be that community that you work inside of quite a bit. And and I'm not saying it like I don't mean it to come off like if you're not doing this, then you're not doing church right. No, no, no. What I'm saying is that it those folks are. Yeah, you are, yeah, you are, and that and that should be that goal that you have in your life because it helps to hold you accountable. Not that, you know, I'm I'm gonna wait for somebody in my church community to come tell me I'm doing wrong, but it helps to hold me responsible and and and hold me accountable for what I'm doing because now those people have this importance in your life that they're helping you stay on direction. Whereas friends that aren't in the church, friends that are outside of the church, they're not gonna have that same sense of responsibility, and you're not gonna have that same spot sense of responsibility towards them. That that that's that's something that comes in there when we talk about that and you say that, you know, it's uh iron sharpening iron type of deal. That's where it comes from. It's not like I'm gonna go there and I'm gonna tell you, Ken, you did this wrong, and I'm gonna expect you to say, Bill, you did this wrong. Although if that happens, it happens. Yeah, but it's that, you know, um, this is what we should be doing, and and you're less tempted to do other things that may not be where you need to be as a as a Christian, you know.

SPEAKER_00 18:19

Yeah, well, that iron-sharpened iron. I mean, there's gonna be some friction there, right? There's gonna be some sparks. I remember there was a guy in our Monday group, he's not there anymore, but he would always talk about he wants to be a great Christian. I want to be a great Christian, I want to be a great husband, great dad. And I thought, you know, keep coming to this group, right? Experience community. And when someone in this group says something that offends you or angers you or whatever, that's it's it's a living lab. That's where you're gonna become a great Christian because you're gonna forgive and love and just keep staying in that relationship, not belling out. Like you want to become a great Christian, get in community because that's where you're gonna learn how to love, right? It's not gonna be outside. I mean, it can be, but you know what I'm saying. It's you're gonna get to practice love and forgiveness, kindness, gentleness, uh, tactfulness, graciousness, you know, within the body of Christ, because we we do inevitably tick each other off sometimes. Yeah.

Moving Beyond Sunday-Only Relationships

SPEAKER_01 19:21

Or frustrate each other. Oh, yeah. And and but but the closer you are in that community, the more you realize when somebody tells you that, you know, oh man, yeah, he's you know, he's right or she's right. And and and you become less offended by something you really shouldn't be offended. You should be, in a way, thankful because that person's looking out for you, and vice versa, if you tell them something, but it but it's harder to do that when your community consists of simply Sundays at church. Yeah. Um and so, you know, some of the things that that that also you you end up doing, I remember, you know, I talked about You know, the the fishing trips when we were little. But d all the other outside activities we did, you know, um the on Sundays nobody worked, but you could play golf. I always thought golf was kind of working because I wanted to get better at it. But and and so we would always go to eat at the Bontan in Giddings or we'd go out to my grandparents' house and eat lunch. And then about one o'clock, when it wasn't football season, about one o'clock, my grandfather would get in his golf cart, go across the street, meet up with his buddies, and they'd play around to golf. Yeah. But it was once again that same group of four or five guys that were in his Sunday school class. Yeah. And uh those are the things, you know, that that would that we we we tend to leave church and the people that we really a lot of times are really friends with are the ones we work with or the ones we live close to or the ones that we've been friends with forever. And it you don't you don't have to exclude those people by any means. It's just that the folks that you're in that church community with should be up there too. If you want to be a stronger Christian, a better example of how to live, those folks need to be because that's where you're gonna get sharpened. You're not gonna get sharpened from your buddies that you've known since third grade and you're gonna go play golf in 'em and they're all sleeping in on Sundays. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 21:26

You know, you're gonna get dull. Yeah. You should you should be with those people, but you're on mission. You love 'em. It's insane. That's right. You're on mission. Project. Yeah, I mean, think about that we had we've done it twice. We've sat at this table we're sitting at and and we we had uh dinner together on a couple Sunday nights. And when I think about that, and we're gonna do it again, but um we heard things that you don't hear on Sunday morning. That's right. And we heard people sharing, and it was organic, it was natural, it was just natural.

SPEAKER_01 21:59

I always end up going first and I say something stupid, and then we get three people into it, and somebody's confessing some great thing. I'm like, man, all of a sudden my stuff sounds really dumb.

SPEAKER_00 22:09

Well, I don't remember that, but but yeah, and it's and it's um I mean, man, I don't know. I long for that stuff. I mean, I went to I meet with uh there's a guy that's my barnabas, he's always encouraging me, and he lived down in Houston. We met this morning in Brenham at Chick-fil-A, and uh like man, it's there's nothing better than that, right? That's a Christian community too. He's a rock deal guy originally, but um but he's you know not in our church, obviously, but man, to get together with a guy that just is for you, he loves you unconditionally, tells you you're great, even though you're not, yeah. But he's sincere about it. Uh you know what I'm saying? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:00

Yep, they will. So that's good. That's good.

SPEAKER_00 23:04

Man, it's a great topic. And yeah, this w person you know, I hope they'll they'll find community wherever, wherever that needs to happen.

SPEAKER_01 23:12

They will eventually, and you just keep working on being that example as best you can. Um it's like we like we've you know, you you you try to be that example, you bring them the good news, and then and then it's on them. And and and you know, you keep working towards it, you keep being that example, but they have to take that next step. And and hopefully, I mean, we pray for it that they will, but um when you when you're already quote unquote there, it's important to stay in those communities. It's important to be part of those groups, it's important to strengthen each other with those groups. And then and and once again, that strengthening is not necessarily saying that somebody's gonna tell you what to do, how to do it, and when to do it. Because I think when you when you are in those communities quite often and you're around those people quite often, you strive to do better yourself. You don't need a lot of people to tell you you're doing wrong or what you need to do. It it helps to reinforce what you need to do, and you'll do it on your own, and it becomes easier to do it than if you're hanging out with 10 non-believers uh at the you know, watching playoff football at the sports bar. Yeah. You know, it's hard to it's hard to be where you need to be when you're in that. Yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_00 24:28

So would you say that's giving I know we need to go, but giving space to the Holy Spirit to work?

SPEAKER_01 24:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 24:34

Is that when you're around the Christian community and you're realizing, wow, I'm not Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 24:39

Because it's the Holy Spirit that's working in you. And and and if if you're feeling that inside, that's the Holy Spirit working on you. Yeah. You know, and that's what we all need. Is that the last word?

Mentors, Timothies, And Real-Life Examples

SPEAKER_00 24:51

That'll be the last word. All right, who's praying today? It's your turn. My turn. Let's do it. Holy Father, we're amazed by you. I thank you for this conversation with with Bill today. And uh want to lift up those that are listening and also for us, and that we would um do better at community, that we'd be intentional about it. Uh, you know, maybe if people are waiting, if any of us are waiting for community to happen, I pray that we would, you know, grab that bull by the horns and um yeah, and serve you through that and understand that it may require some sacrifice. And so help us, help us, Father. We know that people, there's people that are lonely, Christians and non-Christians, and and uh could be that you know some type of organic community uh is the front door for some, maybe coming into a relationship with you. And so we we pray that we'd realize how important this is. We pray these things, Lord, in your son's name. Amen. Amen.

SPEAKER_01 25:48

All right. Well, that is episode number 44 of Let's Connect, the official podcast of Connect Church here in Rockdale, Texas. If you're in Rockdale on a Sunday, and who wouldn't want to be in Rockdale on a Sunday? If you're here on Sunday, come on by. We do coffee and donuts and fellowship at 10 o'clock and uh kick things off with a prayer and and just meet with everybody like we're talking about, part of the community. And service starts at 11:30. We have a nursery, we have children's church, and uh we'll be at the American Legion Hall right now in Rockdale. So come join us if you get a chance. If not, we'll be back next Thursday with another episode. God bless you.