As I said in my last blog post, I write an editorial every month in the newsletter I publish for the program I run at the Y. In the editorial, which is titled Community Corner, I try to write about ideas that encourage and strengthen community. Here's November's Community Corner:
At the beginning of October, I was able to go to the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. Catalyst is a unique conference in that it combines leadership development and spiritual growth in a way unlike any other conference I’ve been able to attend. The theme for this year was “The Tension is Good.” At the conference, every workshop and main session speaker addressed how tension exists everywhere in life and is essential to human existence. This got me thinking about how tension relates to community.
When looking at life in community, one cannot help but notice the tension that exists – its evident everywhere! Tension between balancing work and family time. Tension between paying bills and using money on something fun or donating money to those in need. Tension between who we are and who we want to be.
The list could go on and on because if you think about any aspect of life, chances are there is tension.
Sometimes tension has both negative and positive aspects to it. An example of this can be found in a recent event that took place in my life. My grandfather – who is 85 years old and one of the toughest, stubborn, yet caring men I know – recently underwent major open heart surgery. At first, the doctors weren’t sure if he would make it out of the surgery, but he has recently turned a corner and seems as though he will make a full recovery. In this situation, negative tension was obviously present, as the surgery was a tough event for my family and me to handle. However, it also brought my family together in a way in which they have not been in a long time. It was beautiful, really, to be able to laugh, cry, grow and do life with my aunts, uncles and cousins – with whom I was able to have more meaningful conversations than I’ve had in years.
In the case of my grandfather’s surgery, tension brought life to what could have potentially been a dead situation. See, the cool thing about tension is that we can approach it in one of two ways – we can run from it or we can embrace it. When we run from tension, it usually catches up to us and has the potential to destroy us. However, when we embrace the tension and allow it to guide us, it will eventually make us stronger. Tension causes us to see the need and have the desire for authentic relationships with others – which leads to a beautiful picture of community.
As I’ve said so many times before, we were created to live in community with one another. The tension that exists and actually works to strengthen community is also by design – God fully understands that we need tension to grow closer to Him and to other humans. Romans 5:3 – 5 (NIV) perfectly illustrates how we grow in tension:
“…We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”
Tension is an essential, God-created way of helping us to grow closer to our Creator. Tension elevates the human condition when it is understood and properly channeled. To live in community, we must also live in a tension – community and its importance are impossible to understand without it.
A quote that really had an impact on me at the Catalyst Conference is this: “It is impossible to love people and avoid tension at the same time.”
Will you join us in embracing the tension? Don’t run from it because the tension is good! It is in this tension that we are truly able to experience community.
