Yes, this is good stuff, and it's good to be thinking through all the various ways we connect with our communities. There is not just one way, and we need to flex to the various needs presented to each group of people God puts in our path, whether electronically (for some), or merely those in proximity to each of us. The methods and approach will vary. That is what we all need to understand, and learn to follow the leading of the Spirit in our own lives.

I grew up in the kind of church where, if someone noticed a need/problem, a committee was formed, a program was developed in hopes to do something to meet that need. I grew up with that kind of behavior modeled to me. That may not be so bad, and some people may have been reached in that way. But now I am struggling with re-learning behaviors and habit patterns. Subconsciously I find that I wait for someone else to do the things I need to take responsibility for on my own. Now I see that in many situations I need to just step out and do things...without depending on some organization to do it with me or for me!

Len, I appreciate your approach and desire to invite people in...this is just the kind of thing I want to be doing. But I struggle. It's difficult to do on my own. I feel isolated and alone and without support. I feel that the Christian community around me is not "there" for me to lend a hand. I don't know how to go about following through with the vision I have. This may just be me--my struggle and difficulty may all be in my head--but I find I want to blame my inability to act on some deficiency in the local church.

So...the challenge for local churches today may be to model this behavior of caring and supporting one another--in prayer and in action--on more of a personal level (without feeling we need to develop programs and have committees!). I have, for some reason, begun to reach out online to get some of that support. And there is some there...through prayer and ideas and so on. But how do I get my local Christian community to be *there* for me, when I feel they aren't? I NEED TO BE THERE FOR THEM!