How good and pleasant it is
    when God’s people live together in unity!

 It is like precious oil poured on the head,
    running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
    down on the collar of his robe.
 It is as if the dew of Hermon
    were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the Lord bestows his blessing,
    even life forevermore. – Psalm 133

My heart is so very full today, overflowing with all the love and warmth and encouragement that comes when we are surrounded by such beautiful people, retelling the stories we share – and creating new memories.

A couple of weeks ago, getting ready for our trip, Rebekah and I made a last-minute decision to host some of the folk involved in the Sunday school class we used to teach here in Pensacola.

We originally organized the ministry (known as Kaleidoscope) around the simple idea that – as young families – we needed each other. It became this phenomenon that filled our church with light and love and fun and encouragement and children, putting flesh and bones on the idea of community and teaching us that koinonia is more than an obscure Greek word it is a way of life.

But we left 30 years ago, the majority of the folk who were a part of that community now live in towns and cities all over the country (and world) and we have never had a mailing list to work from.

So I sent an invite through Facebook Messenger to a handful of folk and we hoped for a half-dozen or so along with the opportunity to catch up on some memories and stories.

What happened!

What we got was a beach house full of wonderful people along with more than three hours of hugs and laughter and sharing and tears and hope and promise and so much more. In fact, the very impromptu nature of the evening was exactly how we rolled back in those early days! We couldn’t help but be together, all the time and whenever possible, and somebody’s house always seemed to be full with 40 people plus all our kids and at a moment’s notice!

What happened Tuesday evening was essentially a microcosm of what had united us all in the first place. Over several years, with people arriving in Pensacola and then moving away, and with as many as 100 involved in the ministry at any given time, we shared life and faith with more than 300 young adults. Somehow that sense of koinonia instantly filled this beach house with the love-saturated heart of what community is supposed to be, and we drank deeply from not just the truth of it but the yearning too.

Somehow that sense of koinonia instantly filled this beach house with the love-saturated heart of what community is supposed to be, and we drank deeply from not just the truth of it but the yearning too.

Because – and this is what we are experiencing in Tarboro in many ways – we, as beings created in the image of God, were created exactly for this.

And so, as we enjoyed this fellowship in a house we could only dream of living in, we all found ourselves outlandishly rich in ways that are absolutely ours to claim, and to enjoy, simply by virtue of our response to the invitation that comes from Jesus.

“Day by day, as they spent much time together in church, they broke bread in their homes and ate yummy appetizers with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who responded to the invitation to come home….” – Acts 2:46-47, author paraphrase