The Loneliest Number

There are 32 of us — 15 boys and 17 girls. The ages range from late fifties all the way down to 1 year old. We have one woman who is preg­nant. And of course, we have one Ukrain­ian. Each one of us came with our own story, our own expec­ta­tions, and our own needs for the week. And each one of us has some­thing to give to the group as a whole. Being here this week has reminded me how impor­tant a com­mu­nity is in order to sur­vive this thing called Life.

I woke up early this morn­ing while every­one was still quiet and asleep. I wanted to get out­side, feel the warmth of the day, and meet with Jesus. I just wanted to hear His voice. I was going through my Esther study and came across these words from Beth Moore, “Sad is the soul that deter­mines to exist as an emo­tional island. Dis­con­nected peo­ple can never be whole. Vul­ner­a­ble and painful though it may be, a com­mu­nity of peo­ple whose lives are tied together by the ten­der strings of the heart is life the way God meant it to be lived.” I am reminded of this truth as I watch the hap­pen­ings of the week go on. The strings of my heart are def­i­nitely inter­twined with the peo­ple here on this trip. I am thank­ful for the com­mu­nity that I have here and I am thank­ful for the com­mu­nity the Lord has blessed me with back in Cal­i­for­nia. Here my com­mu­nity is made up of fam­ily but back home it’s made up of friends who have become like fam­ily. One truly is the loneli­est num­ber. But thank­fully, I am not alone!

.