Community building within the context of church is an interesting dilemma. Most seem to agree community is desirable but then expect it to magically happen, which it never does. However, as building a city is possible through intentionality and hard work so is building a community within church. Here are 10 ways that have helped me at different points over the years and I hope will prove beneficial for your building efforts whether you are brand new at church or have been attending for years.

1. First and foremost, consciously choose to pursue people and not expect to be pursued. A natural place to start is with those sitting around you in the gathering. Initiate conversation with genuine interest in the other person.
2. Get out of your comfort zone again and again. Depending on your personality and past experiences, more courage will be needed for some for this step. However, skip this essential, uncomfortable aspect of community building and you can say bye-bye to community before you even built it.
3. Show up at smaller group settings, including classes, Bible studies, and life groups to further create opportunities for connection.
4. Attend special events the church plans that work with your season of life so you are better connected with the heart of the church and are exposed to more and more people.
5. Invite people to a meal, coffee, movie night, game night, craft day, disc golf, a walk, or some other ordinary activity that creates real potential to grow the relationship.
6. Do not listen to your insecurities. Pray. Have courage. Keep reaching out. Focus more on the other person in front of you than the struggles you are internally experiencing.
7. Be patient. Rome was not built in a day. Neither are communities. Keep building.
8. Recognize your limited bandwidth. We were not designed for unlimited close relationships. Jesus called only 12 disciples. He then called only 3 into certain moments. We will not be able to be close to everyone at church, which can perhaps leave us feeling disconnected. Additionally, different seasons of life will affect how much we can pursue others or be involved. Humbly accept reality and be grateful for and content with the connections that are forming. Trust that God will connect you with those you need and who need you in each season.
9. Persevere when community changes. Sometimes we attain that amazing community and then people up and leave the church causing us to feel discouragingly back at square one. Or our circumstances change and we find ourselves at a new church starting from scratch. We must let go of the past and engage in the hard work of building again. However, the past can spur us on since we now know from experience that community is indeed attainable.
10. Lastly, enjoy community. Learn from community. Lean on community. But make God your rock. Make God your confidence. Make God your hotline. Community will ebb and flow. God will stay the same yesterday, today, and forever. The Lord gives and the Lord takes – this includes the realm of community. Cling to God as He providentially guides you in an ever changing community for His glory and the sanctification of His people. His plans are so much higher than our intellect can grasp. Trust Him.

For further thoughts around building community within your church, a resource that you may find beneficial is Belong: Loving Your Church by Reflecting Christ to One Another by Barnabas Piper.