Being a part of the Young Adults community at WoodsEdge has been life changing. After several years of praying for biblical community and seeking out God-honoring friends, my prayers were answered by the incredible young adults in this group, many of whom have become like family to me. There is nothing crazy about these people. They simply love God and love people, and that has made a world of difference in my life. I have grown to know God more through his people, I have grown to love God more through worship and prayer within community, and I have witnessed his movement like never before as I do life with a group of peers who are living in a constant “yes” to whatever God asks.
I now have the privilege to help lead this community as the Young Adults Coordinator alongside Chris Godby, our Young Adults Pastor. It has been an honor every step of the way to see God continue to move as we grow and expand our ministry. Many people who witness our gatherings have the same thing to say: “there is something different about this group.” And we have found ourselves saying that most days as well.
One of the things that I believe sets this group apart is that we have rooted ourselves in three values that we strive to live by:
Gather. Honor. Expect.
We have found over the past several months of gathering, that there is so much to be gained when we simply come together and give of our time for the sake of cultivating Godly community. So, we value and prioritize gathering.
As we have gathered, we have found one of the best tools to cultivate a biblical community (Acts 2), is to practice honoring God and each other in all that we do. As we create a culture of honor, we have grown from strangers to friends, to family, simply by loving God and loving people.
One of my favorite parts of this community, though, is the level of expectancy each individual carries that raises the faith of the entire group. God has been so good to us, and we have seen Him move so faithfully, so we continue to find ourselves expecting Him to come and move again. And He always does!
The incredible thing about this community is that each person carries a testimony, a story of how God provided at just the right time. Most of the young adults here have a similar story to mine: that biblical, Godly community just hadn’t been a part of their life until they found this Young Adults group that now feels like family. I want to share with you a few stories from some of my brothers and sisters in this group that have seen God move in their lives.
Autumn’s Story:
“Earlier this year, I found myself at the lowest point of my life. After a long period of walking away from my faith, I fell into self-hatred and hopelessness after the many years I spent restlessly searching for meaning and identity. I felt as if the foundations of my sense of self and view of the world had been ripped out under me, left bare and in desperate need of answers.
This is when I cried out to God. As I began seeking Him again, I hopped around churches but mostly went at it alone. I distinctly remember praying for friends, for a close group of people that I could lean on. I attended the May 19 YA Night and witnessed a completely different community, one that shifted something inside of me. I saw every kind of person there, all unified with an intense passion and pursuit of Jesus (a kind I had never seen!). I felt God gently leading me out of isolation and into a new family.
I cannot even describe with words what began to happen as I started to seek God alongside these friends. Where I was seeing in black and white, God was breaking through in color. He graciously gave me people to laugh with, to cry with, and to wrestle with my faith, and ask genuine questions. It has been a privilege and a blessing to know that I have brothers and sisters who will help me up when I fall, continuously pointing me back to the truth of Jesus.
At a point when I thought my life was over, God revealed that He actively and relentlessly pursues me with a fierce love, revealing His heart in the many new faces I have gotten to know here at WoodsEdge YA.
This group is a testament to the goodness of God. To the power of the gospel. May we continue spurring each other on, throwing off our burdens together, and turning our eyes to the King.” (Hebrews 12:1-2)
Lee’s Story:
“This community has become a place of rest for me. I am busy with school, work, and simply trying to live life well, and this community serves as a place where I can slow down and simply be. However, I find rest here not simply because of the community, but because of the focus: Jesus. Everything we do is centered around Jesus. He is the reason we gather. We hang out, we worship, we read the Bible, we eat, laugh, and joke, but without Jesus, it's all just stuff. We eat, laugh, and joke focused on Jesus and how He has worked in our lives. This focus changes how a community lives, and this community has truly been invaluable to me in this season of my life.”
Paul’s Story:
“Within my world of ministry and seminary, I was searching for a place and group to rest in. I stepped into the WoodsEdge YA group hoping to enjoy games and fellowship. Now, I continue in this group with so much more. Nights with this group have been delightful and full of laughter and meaningful discussion. Time among these followers of Jesus has been grace upon grace. The Lord has brought about the spiritual blossoming of joy, contentment, awe and wonder, prayer, reverence, and deeper pursuit of worship during my time with this group. I have found friends passionate and committed to Jesus, pushing me onward in the love of the Savior. I have encountered prayers answered, the presence of God filling rooms of prayer and praise, and a communal filling of the Spirit among His people. Oh, how sweet these memories are; they have become a joyful testimony of intimate wonder!”
God is so good. I never knew that before like I know it now, through the love, honor, and support of a Godly community. I could not have dreamed up a community that gathers so faithfully, honors so well, and truly expects that God is going to move in their faith. I have been loved well, challenged much, constantly stretched and grown, and consistently called to a higher standard. What I’ve realized is this kind of community comes as a gift from God, not because of anything I have done, but it does come with a cost. I have given more of my time and energy to this group than I could have expected. I have had to follow Jesus beyond what is comfortable. I have learned to ask when I am in need and give when I have plenty. But that cost has proven worth it time and time again.
I have found true biblical community in this group. Brothers and sisters whom I love like my own family. The Young Adult community at WoodsEdge is an answer to prayer and a Kingdom family that I will cherish for the rest of my life!
To learn more about the Young Adult community at WoodsEdge, go to www.woodsedge.org/youngadults.
