Change Requires Community
By Rick Warren

“Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other” (Romans 12:4-5 NLT, second edition).

You will not make all the changes you need to make, want to make, would love to make, plan to make, or desire to make by yourself. If you could, you would. But you can’t, so you won’t!

The Bible says in Romans 12:4-5, “Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other” (NLT, second edition).

God wired the universe in such a way that we need each other. I need you, and you need me. The phrase “one another” is used 58 times in the New Testament: Love one another, care for one another, encourage one another, support one another, pray for one another, greet one another, share with one another. God never meant for you to go through life as a lone ranger. Even the Lone Ranger had Tonto! You’re not meant to go through life by yourself. Whether you ever marry or not is irrelevant. You need a spiritual family, and you need to be in a small group.

You need me, and I need you. You need the people around you, and they need you. We belong to each other.

There are a lot of good self help books that will tell you the right thing to do, but they don’t provide the two things the Bible says you must have: God’s power and community. That’s what you need to really change. Change requires community.

At Saddleback, we’ve got people from every kind of background. We speak 65 languages at our church and have members from many different religious and ethnic backgrounds and nationalities.

But what we have in common is our love for God. That unites us and allows us to help each other out.

Galatians 3:28 says, “In Christ, there is no difference between Jew and Greek, slave and free person, male and female. You are all the same in Christ Jesus” (NCV).

Talk It Over

• What are the changes you want to make in your life this year? What goals have you set?
• How will the support of the people closest to you help you accomplish those goals?
• What keeps you from accepting or asking for help from other people?

For more Daily Hope with Rick Warren, please visit rickwarren.org

The Daniel Plan Book

During an afternoon of baptizing over 800 people, Pastor Rick Warren realized it was time for change. He told his congregation he needed to lose weight and asked if anyone wanted to join him. He thought maybe 200 people would sign up, instead he witnessed a movement unfold as 15,000 people lost over 260,000 pounds in the first year. With assistance from medical and fitness experts, Pastor Rick and thousands of people began a journey to transform their lives.

The Daniel Plan is an innovative approach to achieving a healthy lifestyle where people get better together by optimizing their health in the key areas of faith, food, fitness, focus and friends.

This devotional © 2016 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

You can also listen to Rick Warren on OnePlace.com.