Ephesians 1:22-23 CSB – And he subjected everything under his feet and appointed him as head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.
Over the last six weeks or so, I’ve only managed to attend church in person once, and the absence has affected me more deeply than I expected. Several Sundays were lost to illness as COVID worked its way through our home, and another Sunday was spent in Michigan while I attended a convention. A few more Sundays were taken up by a family vacation that carried us through Georgia and down the east coast of Florida. In the middle of all of that, there was only one service where I actually made it through the doors, and stepping into that room felt like coming home and meeting everyone for the first time all at once. Something in me felt disconnected, almost as if the rhythms that usually anchor me had been interrupted long enough to make everything feel unfamiliar.
Because I hadn’t been in communion with the body of Christ, I wasn’t functioning anywhere near the level of fullness that comes from being part of a living, breathing church family. The verse above describes the church as Christ’s body, which means every believer is joined to something larger than themselves. When I missed those weeks, I didn’t simply miss services. I missed the connection to the people who help shape my faith, challenge my thinking, steady my heart, and remind me that I’m part of something God Himself designed. The result felt like a kind of spiritual shrinking, a fading at the edges that left me more vulnerable than I realized. That experience reminded me of the importance of staying connected during seasons of sickness, travel, or busyness, because isolation creates openings that the enemy is all too eager to exploit.
Now that I’m able to attend again and even write devotionals again, I can feel that sense of fullness beginning to return. It feels like life flowing back into parts of me that had grown dull during those weeks away. I’m looking forward to serving this Sunday and reconnecting with people I haven’t seen in far too long. There’s a joy in stepping back into the body of Christ and feeling the life of that community rise up around you, which reminds me that we were never meant to walk this journey alone.