We Need Each Other
Title: We need each other – stepping out of isolation and back into community life
Blogger: Kathleen Johnson, Membership and Marketing Director
There is no doubt that the last year has had an incredible impact on us as individuals and as a community, that goes without saying. Sure, when it all started were ok with staying home, and taking a “break” from the world. Most of us looked at it as a much need vacation from our lives, work, and from other people. We deserved a break. And the state of Ohio made it so. Then reality set in.
I know I was ok – at first. Work life came to a halt for a few hours/days and then it was full steam ahead from the new make-shift home office complete with barking dog and husband in the next room trying to work too. I was nervous about the future. Nervous about Zoom. Nervous about what people were calling the “new normal”. And worst of all-nervous about not seeing people.
My husband and I started walking everyday just to get out of the house/office and into community but no one was out. And if we did see someone we would awkwardly move to the other side of the street to create “social distance”. I will say my dog, not being overly friendly and very timid, loved social distancing. I can honestly say my husband was ok with it too. The dog and he are made from the same mold.
One evening we happened to see Pastor Jason Stephens from The Church at Carter’s Orchard, a church we attend (or at least one of them – that is a whole other blog). He was in front of his house wandering around the yard. There was an awkward and uncomfortable exchange. Almost a dance of avoidance, yet longing to connect. Should we stop and talk, talk and walk, walk and wave, or just run? How did we get to that stage in only a matter of a few weeks in isolation?
You know the rest of the story. We weren’t feeling any different from others. The pandemic was long but now isolation has been lifted. Our face is exposed again and our facial expressions can now be seen. So how do you step out into the world again? I work for a social organization so I should be an expert but it took some digging to get my momentum going.
Here is a bit of history of why the Y came into existence to help me explain where I got inspiration. (Resource YMCA.NET) George Williams founded the YMCA in 1844 for the purpose of offering mutual encouragement in the Christian faith.
Industrialized London was a place of great turmoil and despair (much like the Covid Pandemic). For the young men who migrated to the city from rural areas to find jobs, London offered a bleak landscape of dangerous influences.
Twenty-two-year-old George Williams, a farmer turned department store worker, was troubled by what he saw. He joined 11 friends to organize the first Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), a refuge of Bible study and prayer for young men seeking escape from the hazards of life. His goal: to establish “a work of sacrifice and service- improving their environment, giving them victory over their temptations and, above all transforming character through allegiance to Jesus Christ.”
Although an association of young men meeting around a common purpose was nothing new, the Y offered something unique for its time. The organization’s drive to meet social need in the community was compelling. It was not until 40 years later in 1881 a Boston YMCA staffer named Robert J. Roberts coined the term “body building” and developed exercise classes. The Y started as a small group bible study and not a physical fitness facility. Does that surprise you?
I heard a pastor this past week talk about what he referred to as “Relational DNA” inside each of us. Meaning with in us is the need to be in relationship with one another. Here is a quote from him (Dave Stone Retired Pastor of Southeast Christian Church in Kentucky) “We were made to grow with one another and as we face trials of many kinds, a community of believers can help us stand firm. And as our nation begins to emerge from this pandemic and return to some type of normalcy, now more than ever, is a time for us to experience the value of the church, the body of Christ, and the value of one another.”
I really love that statement and I love the fact that at this important time of transition, God finds a way to link me, my family, the Y and the community to provide these pieces to help people step out of isolation and step back into community.
Pastors like Jason Stephens and Dave Stone know and share the need for one another. In a recent podcast, Pastor Stephens talks about isolation as grief. Pause and give that a little thought, some time to resonate. We need each other and when we don’t have some kind of connection, even if it is as small as a friendly store clerk or neighbor walking by, we can lose our strength.
Here are a few more things to think about:
• The times when you would prefer to withdraw from others is probably when you need others the most. There is no such thing as “being a loner”. We all need something or someone to connect to.
• The Journal of the American Medical Association found that when it comes to fighting the common cold, times those with strong emotional connections did 4 times better than those who were isolated. 4 times better! Let just that fact make you step out of isolation and back into community.
Let me end with this scripture from the book of Ecclesiastes Chapter 4: Verses 9-12 (New International Version)
9 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: 10 If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. 11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? 12 Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
God is the third strand in the verse above. I encourage readers to reach out to the Y, a Christian Organization that was designed to be a cord of support. Or to find a church to start pouring into you. We need each other and a connection, a cord to entwine our lives in.
We need each other!
Check out The Who, What, When, Where, and the Y - Podcast 10 for more of the conversation and for information about The Church at Carter’s Orchard.
If you have questions please give us a call or email us anytime. Here’s how you can. Tuscarawas County YMCA 330-364-5511. kathleen@tuscymca.org or jason@tuscymca.org
Y Podcast 10 Link
Resources
https://www.cartersorchard.com/