Transience

For those of you who don’t know, I am out of town.

“Yeah, Tyler, we know. You’ve been away at college for three years now. This is old news” (I am taking for granted that you, the reader, actually know who I am and why I am seldom seen at gatherings— which, by the way, bums me out far more than you know).

This is true, I have been at college. However, since March I’ve been away working full-time in Prineville, in a brief hiatus from school.

You see, a six-month-long internship brought me out here. And although I have extended family out in Central Oregon, it is not home. I miss the valley. My face is constantly dry, my lips are always chapped, the roundabouts are annoying, the grass is so ugly, and I miss the rain. But more than this, I’m miles away from those who I care about most.

Okay, this may sound like a cry for help, but you got to trust me that it is not. Rather, I want to reflect on my experience looking for a local church community during this time and also reflect on the greater calling for an individual involved in Church.

I am in a transient stage of life. I have lived in three different places in the last year, only to graduate next spring and, once again, move to some other place, perhaps permanent this time. If there is any clue of where I’ll be or what I’ll be doing this time next year, it has evaded me. But as for now, I’m in Prineville… with three months remaining.

Church has a different feeling when you are soon to be leaving. And to reconcile with it is often uneasy. I ask myself: “Is it worth it to find a church? After all, I’ll be gone before too long. How engaged do I need to be? What about small groups and serving? As soon as I’d start, I will be moving again. And what about fellowship? Why even bother?” I have all these hesitations about involvement in a church that never existed prior to college, and I believe there is responsibility I have to own in my hesitations. I know and, more significantly, have experienced the importance of a local church community; it’s easy to know when Kingship’s passion is to see people activated. Yet, I still wonder what all of this means in this stage of my life.

I have come to realize that transience can be dangerous. We can easily get stuck in a mindset that perpetuates the temptation to allow transition to become a lifestyle. It can cause us to put values, life experiences, or difficult decisions on permanent pause. No matter how little or how much time passes, we make excuses for the lack of belonging. We can very easily fall into the habit of living our life like wanderers, living as if we are constantly in transition.

In a way, life is always in transition. After school, then a job. Then soon, a house, maybe a spouse. Naturally, kids come next. And through it all, you’re holding out for the next job and “now is not the time.” Then your kids are out of the house and you need to last 10 more years until retirement. And life finally gets good, though ultimately you are drawing near the inevitable death: the final transition.

Okay, this may be a little played out and dramatic. But building a relationship with God and, as far as my point of this article is concerned, building a relationship with the Church can not be neglected. And as much as Paul regarded himself a sojourner in this world, he still saw his responsibility set out before him. He writes in Philippians 1: “ I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.” And as long as he lived, the mission never changed. Similar should be our actions even in the temporary.

So I must not put church on hold. But joining up with a local body is hard and it doesn’t help that I am far from outgoing. I have recently sat in churches where I’ve gone unnoticed, felt out of place, felt singled out, knew nobody, and I now understand why so many people never leave the back pew. Sometimes the church feels like the most lonely place of all. Admittedly, I’m not someone with the confidence to constantly initiate conversation. It is easier for me to isolate, feel lonely and sorry for myself, and leave immediately after that last song than to approach someone and say “My name is Tyler and I need a local church community but don’t know where to begin.” However, we must not forget that the Church is not a building and nor a programmed service. Above that, God’s kingdom is not exclusive to a single church body. So while away, I don’t need to disavow Kingship and fully commit to a local church. I don’t need to join the children’s ministry team for my remaining three months in order to be involved in the Church body. I can serve in a different way the larger Church, with my transitional time, present with a local body that is new to me.

I am thankful that I’ve been taught the importance of church so that, through this trial/transition, I am grounded in the truth God reveals about His Church. The Church is to look after the lost; Jesus speaks the great commission as a command to the first church (Matt. 28:19-20). The Church is to build up one another, encouraging and sharpening each other into Godly men and women (Heb. 10:24-25). The Church is to do the will of God through the Holy Spirit and bring together everyone’s unique giftings (Rom. 12:4-5). The Church is to be in relationship with God (Eph. 5:22-23) and, consequently, relational with one another (Acts 2:42), sharing in the joy of the Lord not just with one another, but the lost. This is universal and transcends any church in the world.

So although I’m often disheartened at my lack of community and especially a local church in this time of transience, I am encouraged that my service towards the Church does not change. I have experienced the joys and fruit of a church pursuing God’s will and I can still contribute to this mission while miles away. I don’t need to know everyone, be super-involved, and be a part of a ministry at a local church (though all good things) in order to be acting out what God calls the individual to do within the Church. After all, Paul was in prison as he mentored and encouraged churches and Timothy was sent away from his mentor and local church body to do God’s will within the greater Church (talk about being “out of town”). My interaction with a local body brings the greater Church closer not just for me but for others.

I want to restate that there is a temptation to make transition normal and consequently live without activation for God’s ministry. Some of us have. It must be remembered that even in our greatest transience, from the beginnings of this life to the beginnings of eternity with God, we were given community, the Holy Spirit, and a commission to help us live for the Kingdom of God. This has not changed. If you haven’t found a christ-centered community, look for one.

I learned the following from some dear people to me: Church is meant to be relational. And if you have ever been to Kingship, I bet you’ve heard “Kingship is a relational church.” Church is far more than coming on Sunday and consuming the music or the message. I would know, I’m almost never physically present at a Sunday Morning Gathering but yet I consider Kingship my own. Kingship is where I have and continue to live out fellowship, be relational, share in the joy of my salvation, use my giftings, pursue the will of my Lord, and serve the Kingdom of God. That doesn’t need to change when I’m away. I have not been sent out just yet.

I tell you all of this for three reasons. First, you may feel the same way: you’re discouraged about a local church community. Do not give up. Take courage, know that God did not make us to go through life alone, and trust in the promise of God’s provision. Know that your servitude of God is not provisional of where you attend Sunday mornings, but if you haven’t found a community, keep looking, for it is fundamental in any believer’s life. Two, the church body, Kingship included, may need to hear this and be convicted: is enough being done to engage searching individuals and follow-up in order to bring fellowship to one another? This does not mean you have to be everyone to everybody, but at least reach out and be looking for ways God may be working. Lastly, for everyone, church is not exclusive to Sundays. Continue to be relational and serve God throughout the week, because it doesn’t matter whether you are in church, 10 minutes away, or 3 ½ hours away in Prineville, these things don’t change.