Probably the most basic skill necessary to vital relationships is communication, simply being able to talk and listen. Sounds simple, right? Yet we find that more times than not, we misunderstand each other or mis-speak to one another in a way that causes our communication to break down, resulting in confusion, hurt, and tension. We are then tempted to just give up and retreat, feeling as if it’s not worth the hard work it takes to hear or be heard.

            I see this dynamic of clear, honest, open and non-anxious dialogue as the primary stumbling block to building a healthy community within a congregation. When we feel misunderstood or misjudged because we were not heard correctly, we tend to shut down and break off communication in a way that leads to divisions and mistrust of one another. While I’m not sure which component of the speaking/listening equation is more difficult, (though I’d guess it’s listening), both parts are equally important and a breakdown in one or the other eventually leads to an unhealthy relationship.

            In our congregation at Marion, we are attempting, by God’s grace, to become a healthy community where the Kingdom of God is an evident reality. A healthy community only grows out of the fertile soil of healthy relationships. We as Jesus’ followers, who are “in Christ”, proclaim ourselves to be new creations but all too often our unhealthy communication patterns reflect our old selves, leading to broken rather than reconciled relationships.

            In 2 Corinthians 5, Paul refers to the “ministry of reconciliation” to which we have all been called in Christ. I am convinced that we will have nothing but failure in trying to reconcile the world to God, or to one another, if we ourselves cannot be reconciled to our brothers and sisters in Christ.  Put simply, if we don’t have our act together in the church, then it is all just an act and nobody will want to join what we’re inviting them into!

            Hear Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 5:17-20. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!  All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.”

            Hmm… as though God were making his appeal through us… Wow, if that is how God wants to reach those who are not yet living under his reign, reconciled to him, then our role as a church is immensely important, and therefore how we get along and how we communicate is all an integral part of our witness to the world!

            As we have discussed this as a Ministry Council, we felt it would be helpful to get some input and training in order for us to grow together in being able to talk and listen in healthy ways that promote healthy relationships.  We are excited to have Marcus Smucker coming to provide this input, and we encourage everyone who is able, to make this time together a priority and be here if at all possible. See “Communication Equip-ment” elsewhere in this issue of the Marion Memo for more information on that day and on Marcus, and stay tuned for more information as the date approaches.

            May we together continue to grow into the healing community that God dreams for us to be, and may we find strength and grace from one another as we talk along the way!