You will need to be intentional and put yourself out there.
At a large church, it’s easy to be anonymous. We love that Hope is designed as a place for people to check things out. However, it’s not our desire for people to stay there. We want people to get plugged into community here at Hope. We’ve tried to make that as easy as possible with lots of different options, but it will still take being intentional, taking risks, and putting yourself out there. Take advantage of the opportunities put before you. Introduce yourself to leaders. Make yourself known.
You may need help navigating different options.
Though we love our Sunday services together, we don’t want them to be your end goal. It’s impossible to actually build authentic community by just attending on a Sunday. That’s why we have so many different onramps into community here at Hope. Some love that, while others get overwhelmed by it. We’d love to help you navigate all those different options. If you’d like, simply send Davis an e-mail at coffee@hopecc.com and he’ll direct you to the right person. We’d love to take you out for coffee and help you figure out where to start and answer any questions about opportunities you may have!
You may need to try multiple things.
Just like in all arenas of life, sometimes you have to try lots of different things before you find the right fit. Don’t let one experience stop you. Try again. Whether it’s small groups, serving, attending specific events, interest groups… you may need to explore lots of different options.
Even when you find your place, relationships take time.
Trust and relationships are built over time. When trying to build community and get involved, we all need to check our expectations. It will take time for people to get to know you before you become gospel friends. It will take time for people to get to know you before you’re put into leadership positions. It will take time for people to get to know you before trust is extended. It takes time.
In order to find community, you need to Be community.
If we’re honest with ourselves, many of us come with a consumerism mentality. Our focus is honed in on what we get. We believe the gospel calls us to live beyond ourselves, and at times focus more on what we can do for others versus what they can do for us. This means we may have to die to our own preferences sometimes. This means we may need to be the first person to take efforts to be intentional, communicate, ask good questions, and so forth. In many ways, in order to get a good friend you need to be a good friend.
Be mindful of and evaluate your expectations.
As mentioned before, some people have unrealistic expectations when trying to build community and get involved. At Hope, we repeatedly say that we’re all sinners saved by grace. When you’re in community with people, it takes emotional risk – you will get hurt and you will be let down. There are times when it will be difficult. Culture tends to skew some of our expectations, so we always need to ask ourselves “Are these expectations accurate or realistic?”.
If you haven’t noticed the thread…it takes Time.
Time, time, time. Relationships take time. We live in such an instant gratification and impatient culture that it’s hard to remind ourselves of this. Don’t be led to believe the lie that because it’s taking time that therefore it’s not working. In fact, it’s often quite the opposite!
