Fellowship

 

Photo by Autumn Mott Rodeheaver/Unsplash

I hate election years. I feel like we all need a personal conflict management angel on our shoulders. 

I also hate this year in particular. Though I can clearly see some positive outcomes (more like attitude and priority shifts) due to quarantine life, COVID-19 has been a major disruptor and not in a good way. 

I think the world needs more fellowship. Somehow we have to figure out how to do it virtually and or in a way in which we can abide by social distancing measures, but we do need it. 

I recently saw a church post about how you can't get adequate "church" on the couch (during virtual worship services) and that people need to find a church that has in-person worship. I strongly disagree with a sentiment that guilts people into thinking they should risk their health or they won't have sufficient contact with God. Yet as much as I was horrified when I read that, I understood that people are yearning for connections we have lost.

I have family and friends with whom I disagree on things that are important and tough to talk about. Still, when we have those difficult conversations, we understand each other better and find that love prevents our bridges from being burned. When we have more frequent connections, we remember that we're all human, flawed, fabulous, and dealing with our own struggles. There's more empathy and compassion, I believe, when we're in fellowship, whether that's in office cubicles or choir lofts.

I know myself: I'm passionate (my husband says it's my Latina heat) and not afraid to speak my mind. I know that I will continue to voice my concerns and wishes, even in (especially in) an election year, but I also want to make sure I make room for the other voices that are different from mine. I don't want to crowd people out, especially when we're already so isolated this year.

I find wonder in love that can withstand disagreements and bonds of fellowship that are stronger than our differences. And I wonder how we can continue to foster that fellowship even while apart.

Why the campfire image above? Because it's autumn and I wish we could all gather at a campfire and make s'mores together and just be with each other in fellowship. I wish we could all fit in that space, feel welcome, feel heard, and feel loved.  And because chocolate makes everything better. We need fellowship and we need chocolate.

Why I started this blog