Never underestimate the power of connections.
This is something I tell myself often. When I say this, I’m not talking about networking or schmoozing. I’m simply talking about the power of being connected in relationship.
I’m talking about building awareness of one another. Knowing names. Introducing people and deepening friendships. Living in kinship. Understanding the stories people carry. Engaging with the giftedness people have to offer. Living in awareness of needs.
Hugh Hollowell of Love Wins Ministries, a community of care and presence with people experiencing homelessness, often says, “The opposite of homelessness isn’t housing. The opposite of homelessness is community.” People often fall through the cracks because they do not have a community deep and wide enough to hold them up in a time of crisis.
So never underestimate the power of connections.
You never know how someone’s story might connect to someone’s story.
You never know how someone’s presence might connect to someone’s need.
You never know how someone’s awareness might increase empathy, solidarity, and action.
Introduce people. Cultivate community space. Learn more about people around you. See what commonalities you might find. Because when we do all of these things, we create the conditions that make support possible — sometimes in ways we haven’t yet imagined.
Smuggling Grace 