After being involved in church life for almost fifty years, I see a real danger when churches invest in activities as opposed to community. Activity can be mistaken for community. No doubt this happens! You can have activity without community. Activities should be planned only when they foster community. Activities should serve community. Activites should build community. Activities should bring God’s people together for the purpose of deepening relationships within the church family! Church people can be addicted to activities because they are easy to plan and pull off. In far too many churches activities substitute for community! Sadly, this is the situation in more than a few churches.

Building community within a church family requires hard work. Community is hard work because it produces disciples of Christ! Activities don’t produce disciples. Activities may enlarge memberships but activities do not produce genuine committed followers of Christ! Beware of activities that substitute for community. Community can’t happen within an activity driven church. Community happens when churches use activitites for the purpose of discipling. Discipleship is the goal, not activity! Discipleship occurs within community… making disciples is our goal!