To some extent, each of us already participates in the neighborhood and community world. We belong to some organizations and know that more associations exist around us. We have our network of friends and neighbors. Each of us has a set of gifts that when named, collected, and offered can provide great satisfaction. We are already on the path to becoming more powerful citizens and avoiding many of the costs associated with being consumers.
What is needed is for us to more fully engage as citizens and to shift our attention, our narrative, toward the community way that we can reclaim. Community properties and family capacities can become the centerpiece for fulfilling our desire for a satisfied life.
All too often we start into meaningful work feeling a day behind and a dollar short. Se opt for shame or blame to protect us from a deeper sense of scarcity. But belonging to community is already happening- it’s a matter of howyou choose to belong.
List a few associations you belong to already: perhaps a rotary club, a cycling group, a congregation or a guild. Consider how these are already sources for creating abundance and strengthening social fabric. Is there a challenge or possibility you could speak into that association that moves the group from a consumer posture to a creative producer posture when it comes to the community and world we live in?
McKnight, John. The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods (p. 116). Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Kindle Edition.
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