Kind words are good, gifts are nice. It all depends, I suppose, on your “love language” and personality type. But I think most people, to one degree or another, feel loved when someone comes alongside of them and offers real and meaningful help. One of our deepest needs, I think, is to know that we are not alone.

I tend to be very independent, and think that I can do it all. But being highly capable can sometimes lead to pride, pure and simple, and this something I’m asking God for help with. God, in his graciousness, is showing me a better way. He’s brought some folks alongside of me to help me.

Earlier this month, I spoke at a conference in Edwardsville, IL, near St. Louis. What an amazing group of women planned this event. I spoke on “Breathe” and they took that theme and ran with it!

I travel and speak quite a lot, and enjoy it. But it can sometimes be lonely. Even though the conference or retreat organizers make me feel welcome, they are people I’ve only gotten to know a bit through e-mail. And they have              Keri & the "Breathe" Team
lots of details to attend to as they
run the retreat itself.

But this time, my personal assistant Wendy came along with me. Wendy recently volunteered to help me with my ministry, and that help has been amazing. While I am administratively challenged, she loves to organize. While I sometimes struggle with making conversation with strangers, Wendy is a
pro at it. She’s bubbly and outgoing, makes everyone feel comfortable and welcome.

Having her travel with me made a huge difference for me. She kept track of lots of little details, she prayed with me just before I went on stage to teach, she ran the book table, making change and so on, so that I could be available to be fully present with the women I was trying to minister to. It was amazing to have her there. My work was so much more enjoyable, not to mention effective, with her there. Her supportive presence made
            Wendy & Keri          me feel loved and ministered to, which in turn   
raised my energy for the teaching and ministry I was doing.

When Jesus walked this planet, before he began his public ministry, he gathered a group of people, inviting them to be a part of what he was doing. Even he did not really do ministry alone. While he chose twelve young men to be apostles, he also had a number of other followers, including several women who supported his ministry in a number of practical ways, including financially. (see Luke 8:1-3)

When those same folks got to understand his teachings pretty well, he sent them out to preach and heal, but always he would send them two by two.

Throughout Paul’s letters in the New Testament, he uses the phrase “one another”—as in, “forgive one another,” or “encourage one another.”

Christianity is a “one another” faith. It is meant to be a team sport.

Paul wrote, “Now the body is not made up of one part but of many…Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it” (I Corinthians 12:14, 27).

You may not be working in full-time ministry, or think you are. But if you are caring for your family—whether that is young children, aging parents, or even your spouse—that is a “ministry.” If you are praying for your neighbors, trying to love them, that is a “ministry.” If you help out in some way in your church, even behind the scenes, you are ministering to others.

You are a part of the body of Christ. And as such, whether you are volunteering at church or loving the lonely in your community, your ministry will be more effective if you don’t do it alone.

You were made for community. God himself exists in the community of Father, Son and Spirit, and we were made in his image.

Whatever your ministry, don’t do it alone. If you are an at-home mom, don’t let yourself be isolated. When you take your kids on an outing, invite another mom along. Join a MOPS group, a Bible study or a book club to connect with others. Ask other moms for help and advice.

If you are an empty-nester, it may feel like you’ve lost the automatic connection that your kids provided. Do you suppose there may be other women in your same stage of life that are feeling the same way? Why not invite one of them to have coffee, and to brainstorm about how you can minister to others in your church or neighborhood, and how you can do it together?

Our culture has countless sophisticated ways of staying in touch: e-mail, text message, cell phone, etc. But we’re also a people who feel the ache of isolation so often. Come alongside someone to share their load, and you’ll find your own load can’t help but be shared as well.

Speaking

• Keri will be speaking to the MOPS group at South Park Church in Park Ridge, IL on Dec. 5. The group meets at 9 a.m. Learn more at www.southparkchurch.org
   

• Keri will be the keynote speaker at a women’s holiday event at Westlake Bible Church in Austin, TX on Dec. 6. She will be speaking
  on “The Gift of Christmas Present.” She will also speak at Westlake’s MOPS group that morning.
   

• Keri will be speaking to the women's group at Christ Community Church's Blackberry Creek campus on January 5, on "Breathe." The church is located at 40 W 098 Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. For details, check the church website at www.ccclife.org.

Web

• Check out Keri’s blog, Deep Breathing for the Soul, at www.keriwyattkent.blogspot.com  You can read Keri’s latest musings on the connection between faith and real life, you can post a question about any of her books or other writings.
   

• Keri posts each Thursday on www.boomerbabesrock.com/blog. She writes about faith, family and fun on this site dedicated to women of the baby boom generation.
   

• If you are a parent or work with kids, and feel like you are always pouring out, click over to Keri’s “For Your Soul” column http://www.christianitytoday.com/childrensministry/articles/ and get filled up. This column, written for those who minister to children, will give you encouragement and practical help with nurturing your own soul.