Spiritual Practice: Community Challenge

November 14, 2023 | Jake Harp

While we are more digitally connected than we’ve ever been, loneliness has ironically reached a status described by the Surgeon General as epidemic. As early as Genesis 1-2, God designed people to be in community with other people. To encourage his disciples to endure through the troubles that would come to them, to demonstrate his love to the world through them, and to form his followers to be more like him, on the eve of his death, Jesus instructed his closest friends to simply “love each other” (John 15:17).

Our lives were not meant to be lived alone. This is where the spiritual practice of community comes into play. Below you can find a few ideas about ways to lean into your community to both love others in your community and grow in your own faith walk in this NEW LIFE season of generosity.

Crawl: Join your local Buy Nothing group, and look for posts where people are requesting something specific. If you have an item they’re looking for, offer to give it to them.

Walk: Give an encouraging gift anonymously to someone in your community. Make sure it can’t be traced back to you. This provides an opportunity to love someone else without an expectation of reciprocation (including the credit they give you).

Run: Open your budget to a trusted friend who also follows Jesus. Have them audit your spending against your stated priorities, and then talk about what they notice. Commit to receiving their feedback with an open mind and heart.

P.S. I’ll use this post about community as a shameless plug for joining a group, actually participating in a group (if you’re in one but are only marginally involved), or doubling down on your commitment to a group here at Venture. These groups aren’t only about fulfilling a social need or learning more about the Bible- these groups are the perfect place to grow in our obedience to Jesus’ instruction to “love each other.” Please shoot me an email at if you’d like more information about our groups at Venture.

Jake Harp

Jake is a native of Illinois where he first learned about ministry by watching his dad work in the church. He has earned degrees from Missouri Southern State University and Lincoln Christian University. Prior to starting at Venture during the summer of 2022, he served as a Small Groups Minister in Southwestern Missouri. While in Missouri, he and his wife began growing their family and moved to Hamilton County with three kids and one on the way. Jake also has a love for ax throwing which caused him to open up his own mobile ax-throwing business.