Doing Life Together

By Ellex Hiebert, Director of Christian Formation, Campus Worship

Remember the expression, “do life together?”

The slogan singlehandedly carried various Christian campaigns across the United States in the early 2000s. From budding church plants to marital counseling to small groups, the idea of togetherness was tactfully pushed.

That is, until the global pandemic of COVID-19.

In the aftermath, it seems togetherness – while deeply craved – hasn’t quite found its footing. In a recent study conducted by the Cigna U.S. Loneliness Index, “three out of every five adults, or 61% report that they sometimes or always feel lonely.”

This showcases that now more than ever, Christian institutions have a magnanimous opportunity before them.

What better way to combat the epidemic of loneliness than through the body of Christ? Where togetherness is already organically built in?

Paul states, “God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the less honorable, so that there would be no division in the body, but that the members would have the same concern for each other.  So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it (1 Cor 12:24-26).”

Don’t miss those key phrases: No division. Same concern. If one – then all. Believers are to share those moments in the valley just as they do on the mountaintops. The road of sanctification, though a singular pursuit, parallels another, and another, and another.

It’s for this very reason that we emphasize discipleship groups at Bryan College.

While we offer a robust calendar of Christian Formation events, including chapel, breakouts, and outreach projects – belonging more often is felt in intimate settings. Here, students experience spiritual sharpening, compassionate accountability, and true togetherness.

One-to-one discipleship has also grown exponentially in the last two years on campus. My heart is always filled when I see a team member circling the quad with a student (a regular occurrence, mind you) deep in conversation about Jesus.

No amount of administrative work could ever pull us away from these moments of connection.

I can’t help but think this is what the author of Hebrews had in mind when he wrote, “And let us watch out for one another to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching” (Heb 10:24-25).

Commentary From Pentecost to Patmos: An Introduction to Acts through Revelation emphasizes, “If the author of Hebrews insisted that Christians not give up meeting together (v. 25a), even under growing persecution and unrest, how much greater a disgrace is it when believers in less dangerous settings think they can go it alone in the Christian life or treat regular gatherings with fellow believers casually as an option only if nothing else intrudes on their schedules?” (Blomberg and Love, 632).

Togetherness isn’t a suggestion to the body of Christ. It’s an expectation that is sure to bear fruit.

I was feeling terribly sick one day when a former student took it upon herself to put together a gift basket for me. In her three-page letter, she referred to me as a “fellow broken vessel” and then proceeded to thank me for being “an older sister in Christ.” While some may have taken offense to the former, as a believer, I was overcome with humility.

This is what togetherness looks like.

No division. Same concern. If one – then all. It’s what sets Bryan College apart.

We do life together. Because we were always meant to.