Claire Pablo

From the moment I entered the Law’s home for the first time for a Wednesday night Bible study in 2010 I felt welcomed and loved. As the Bible study turned into a small church meeting in the Bezner’s living room, and that small church meeting in a living room turned into a growing church meeting in a school, the church has not lost its commitment to welcome strangers, to befriend those who haven’t been in church for years, or to love those who might have different experiences and interests than other members of the Commons.

When I think about community within a church the first things that come to my mind are church potlucks and mingling before the service starts. We definitely have those kinds of things at the Common’s, but we have so much more. The Commons has taken the call to love others as Jesus loves us very seriously; that love is shown as we live in community and share our lives with each other. There are so many ways we serve and love each other, like picking someone up from the airport, texting someone when you think of them during the week, crying with someone as they share what’s really on their heart, committing to help pass out coffee and donuts early on a Saturday morning when you could be sleeping, sending emails with praises of answered prayers, and taking time out of your week to grab a meal or coffee with a new church member who will later become a friend not just someone you see on Sunday mornings. The Commons is most definitely not a church building or a church service on Sundays, but a group of believers seeking to know Christ, to encourage each other, to support each other, and to reach out to others and bring them in.