conect with community
Regardless of where you live, chances are you only use a fraction of your community resources. Undoubtedly, there are adventures waiting for you just down the street!
Unless you live in a community with less than a few thousand people, you likely have access to dozens of activities and businesses in your city or town.
Consider the following suggestions before you set out to explore your community:
1. Make a list of places you’ve heard about in your community but never visited. Maybe your city has a factory that produces a product and that factory gives regular tours. If you’ve never taken the tour, put that factory on your list.
* If your area is known for producing certain products, decide to learn about those products and how they’re made.
2. Check out the agriculture in your area. Are you surrounded by rich, fertile farmland where food products, like soybeans, berries, or other fruits and vegetables are grown? If so, visiting a local farm will be a wonderful education for you and your children. As you explore your community, you’ll be amazed at the bounty that’s offered right at your doorstep.
3. Frequent your neighborhood hangout. Whether it’s the local coffee shop, a bookstore, or the grill cafe a few blocks away, find a relaxed place to frequent and connect with other community members. Truly connecting with your community involves getting out and meeting friends old and new.
4. Discover the freebies. Free events and venues abound in many communities. Take advantage of everything free that your community has to offer. For example, public libraries, parks, and nature sanctuaries offer many benefits.
5. Visit your local museums. You’ll have some fun and learn something fascinating about the community in which you live. Even the smallest towns often have a museum or two.
6. Consider your tourist attractions. There’s a reason why people travel far and wide to come enjoy your tourist attraction. Find out why! Even though you might believe tourist attractions aren’t your thing, you don’t know for sure what such venues offer until you experience them firsthand.
7. Take a notebook with you when you’re out in your community. When you’re actively looking, you’ll be surprised how many local businesses and organizations you haven’t yet visited.
* Jot down those businesses in your notebook so you’ll have a running list of the places you hope to explore. Although you might not be able to visit every single one of them, set aside a few hours here and there to check them out.
Although it’s easy to take your community for granted, remind yourself that you reside in one of your favorite places in the world. Seek out the special attractions and discover new qualities you love about your area. Make it a point to know everything possible about where you live.
The process of learning about the place you call home will deepen your connections with your community and enrich your life beyond imagination. You’ll come out with more knowledge, greater satisfaction, and undoubtedly a few friendships, too!
- Organic Community
Organic Community Review
Joe’s first book changed the way I look at community and how people belong in my community.
Joe’s second book continued to help me do that by giving some very helpful, effective and “common sense” approaches to leadership of this kind of community.
I have found that many pastors who read Joe’s books find themselves uncomfortable with the ideas he presents. But, I have found that many “lay people” (for lack of better word) read his stuff and say, “yeah, duh. isn’t that the way its supposed to be” or “man, I wish I could find a church that gave me the freedom to live like this.”
The ideas and thoughts he writes about often made me say “duh, why have i never realized that.” And you truly let them sink in and try take them seriously you realize they can radically change the way you look at not only Church but life in general.
A theme that I have found resonates through each book is that we leaders need to have more trust in the people in our communities. And just because they don’t fit in our models of what a correct participant in our communities looks like, doesn’t mean they are not living faithfully and compassionately as followers of Jesus…
I’d recommend this book to anyone… in fact, I already have to a bunch of people and pastors.
