“Are you a Christian?” she asked.

“I am.”

“Would you like to come to our home church? It’s on Sunday night at seven-thirty.”

That was my very first conversation with a local on my very first day in Longyearbyen, where I spent the 2024 Arctic summer season working as a guide.

Angie and her friends welcomed me with open arms. And in a place where I’d previously only really had the benefit of marveling at God’s creation and seeking him in the solitude of beautiful walks, I suddenly had a small, but vibrant community of brothers and sisters in Christ.

It didn’t matter that I didn’t speak a word of Tagalog or that I wasn’t as used to late nights; we worshipped, we studied God’s word, we shared, we encouraged and learnt from each other, and we prayed and ate together while I was in town.

When collecting guest meals before boat trips, one of my new friends was often behind the counter of the local deli and always greeted me with a smile. When leaving the gym, there were a few familiar faces amongst the guys just starting a basketball game in the hall next door. And when I was walking the dogs, every now and then a car would stop beside me so that the occupants could say hello.

The warmth, generosity, encouragement, and consistency of a home church at 78° north was such an unexpected blessing! It also prompted some serious reflection on my part, namely,

  • As someone who is currently in a season that includes lots of travel, how high is finding Christian community on my priority list?
  • How well am I welcoming others I come across along the way or who visit when I’m home?

Jesus was big on community. Yes, he often withdrew to quiet places to pray, but being alone wasn’t his default setting. In John 13:35, he said, “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples” (NLT). Simply put, how can we love one another if we don’t spend time together?

1 Thessalonians 2:8reminds us, “Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well” (NIV). Our roles in each other’s lives don’t end once we’ve shared Jesus with each other; that is simply the starting point.

Be Stronger together

I had taken a big leap of faith, heading over to the Arctic before contracts and other paperwork were firmly in place. It was a risk I had felt led to take, and while there were significant challenges along the way, God blessed me with a better season than I could ever have planned for myself. Much of the strength I needed during the hard times I drew from my friends, my Christian brothers and sisters, and my work colleagues—my community.

Ecclesiastes 4:9–12 teaches us that we are stronger together: “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken” (NIV).

It can be tempting to downplay the importance of Christian community or to make excuses regarding time or different preferences, especially when travelling. But as a wise friend once pointed out to me, in any relationship you can choose to focus on your differences or on what you have in common; you can look for discord or for common ground.

And our common ground is the wonderful news of Jesus Christ dying for us on the cross to redeem us to God.

Be intentional

With the increasing trend of remote work and/or travel, it is now more important than ever to be intentional about how we spend our time and about seeking Christian community.

Hebrews 10:24–25 encourages us to do just this: “Let’s consider how to encourage one another in love and good deeds, not abandoning our own meeting together, as is the habit of some people, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near” (NASB).

How would your approach to travel change if you were to start asking: Where am I going to worship today, this week, or this month?

Welcome others

There are numerous Bible verses that encourage us to offer hospitality to strangers and foreigners (Hebrews 13:2 and 1 Peter 4:9). I was blessed with unimpeded hospitality and a welcoming spirit in Longyearbyen—not only from my home church, but also from new friends and colleagues—and it’s made me consider my own ability to extend hospitality to others: Am I doing so with an open heart or begrudgingly?

Another thing that sometimes stands in our way is perfection. We think (complain, even) that our homes aren’t tidy enough to welcome guests, or we feel we look too disheveled to engage with a visitor. But if I think about the times I’ve been a guest in another person’s home, the environments where I felt the most comfortable and relaxed were those when I was welcomed into the fray of the household—things weren’t perfect, but we connected more authentically because of it. Let’s practice what some authors term “messy hospitality.”1

Staying connected is hard to do while on the road, but it is so, so important! While our solutions to this challenge may differ, I pray that—wherever you are—you would join me in earnestly seeking out Christian community, encouraging the brothers and sisters you do come across, praising God for those who support you on your journey, and practicing messy hospitality whenever the opportunity presents itself.

References

  1. Keri Lynn Snyder, “Messy Hospitality; How to Make Peace with Household Imperfection,” Ruthie Gray Dot Mom, accessed November 20, 2024, https://www.ruthiegray.mom/messy-hospitality-household-imperfection/.