I came across a very thought-provoking article by George Halitzka on Boundless.org that spoke to some of the difficulties that Christians and non-Christians alike encounter in trying to develop and maintain community...the original article was well worth the read, but these were a few of the main ideas that were particularly striking to me:

"Please Hear What I'm Not Saying"

Don't be fooled by me. Don't be fooled by the mask I wear.

For I wear a mask. I wear a thousand masks — masks that I am afraid to take off,

and none of them are me. Pretending is an art that's second nature to me.

But don't be fooled, for God's sake, don't be fooled!

I give you the impression that I'm secure, that all is sunny and unruffled with me,

within as well as without, that confidence is my name and coolness is my game,

that the water is calm and I'm in command, and that I need no one.

But don't believe me. Please.

"Unfortunately, building a community, with one person or one hundred, is difficult. It calls us to bravely face loss; not running from grief but passing through the Valley of the Shadow. Knowing and being known will wound you so badly you'll never completely heal. Yet if friendships are to be worth having, and life worth living, you need to care anyway. A daring love called agape is the essence of authentic community."

So the question that I am left with, then, is whether I am willing to take the dare? Accept the wounds? Walk through the pain and accept the grief?

But can one bear the alternative to refusing this dare, which is doubtless far uglier than the consequences?

May God grant us the grace to build and maintain authentic community--to take the harder path and reap the deeper reward...