Terrian on Building Intentional Community
A Call to Embrace Church Life
When we asked Terrian Bass to share something that excites her about the future she quickly highlighted the significance of community. Reflecting on her experiences on tour and her recent move to Nashville, she underscored the importance of intentionality in building strong connections within the church.
“I think community; I experienced such a strong community this year, and seeing that it’s possible with intentionality, [as we become] willing to embrace one another’s flaws and be honest about what’s actually going on in your life with people who love Jesus, who will pray over you and who will challenge you when you don’t want to be challenged,” Terrian shared.Community, grounded in mutual love for Jesus, offers a space where people can genuinely care for one another.
Moving to a new city poses its own challenges. Terrian and her husband are determined to plant deep roots in their new church community. “We have to be so intentional about community in this next season of life,” she emphasized. She’s found it takes intentionality to foster authentic connections and to ensure that they are not merely attendees but active participants in their church.
The pandemic has undeniably disrupted community life, especially within the church. Terrian acknowledged this, saying, “I know a lot of people are like, ‘I’ll just go and watch church on YouTube’ because it’s the easy thing to do. And it’s hard to get up on a Sunday morning, I’ll tell you that, especially when you’re fresh off of the road. It just feels like the last place sometimes you feel like going to is the church and being around a ton of more people. But no, we need the church,” she says.
Terrian quotes Hebrews 10:25, “Let us not neglect our church meetings, as some people do, but encourage and warn each other, especially now that the day of his coming back again is drawing near” (TLB). The convenience of online services cannot replace the profound impact of gathering in person, which the Bible encourages us not to forsake.
Terrian recounted a story about a Ghanaian student’s view on church. “People in Ghana walk like three hours just to get to church sometimes,” she noted. This student’s perspective serves as a powerful reminder of the value of communal worship, challenging the often-complacent approach found in more comfortable settings.
Terrian encourages us to embrace intentionality and overcome the barriers to participation, in hopes of cultivating a stronger, more connected faith community.
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