When money’s tight, community matters

My wardrobe has two categories at the moment: the first is things I have hung on to from when I was working full time as a teacher and had the income to buy new clothes. The second is op shop finds, or things I’ve got hold of through my community’s free-cycle Facebook group. As we’ve gone from a two-income household to a post-grad student and toddler-centric life, our budgets and priorities have changed. But it’s not just a question of our circumstances changing. The money I spent on new, teaching-appropriate clothes five, six, seven years ago would not stretch anywhere near as far today. Prices everywhere have risen.

As prices rise, so do our stress levels. It’s not easy living in an economy where the costs keep going up and up. I don’t know about your circumstances, but not many people have had an increase in wages or income that comes close to keeping pace with inflation. Most of us are feeling the pinch on petrol, rent, groceries—on everything. As Christians, we are called to be generous. But it’s hard to feel generous when every dollar is precious.

I don’t have magical answers about budgeting hacks or cost-saving measures. This article isn’t really about finances at all, but about the importance of community. It’s about how learning to live frugally can only become possible because of community. It’s about how the local church has a crucial role to play in this financial crisis—as the centre of its community. And it’s about how genuine community, built on a generous ethos, is what can save us when the going gets tough.

As Christians, churches should be the focus of our communities. This isn’t always the case, but I believe we have a real opportunity for churches to regain that place and become known for their radical, generous love. This isn’t just an outflow of a church giving resources, but churches being the basis of real communities where each member cheerfully contributes what they can and accepts what they need. In essence, to act like the community of believers outlined in Acts 2.

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,  praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42–47)

People in our churches need Jesus. People outside our churches need Jesus. But people also need to live and eat and be clothed. In a world that seems dark and difficult, the church has the perfect chance to be the light shining in those shadows, demonstrating God’s love to the world around them. As James says:

 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?  Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed’, but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. (James 2:14–17)

Good works are not a prerequisite of faith, but faith that doesn’t produce good works is dead. This passage from James makes it clear that these good works need to deal with the essential issues of food and clothing for our message about Jesus to be taken seriously.

When I say churches should be the hub of this kind of work, I don’t just mean organised programs and  ‘official’ giving to the less fortunate. I mean the family of God, the network of believers within a local church showing generosity through the rich tapestry of their connected relationships. Church leadership and formal organising definitely has a role to play; but I am also talking about how individuals and families within the church can practice this kind of radical generosity.

There are plenty of ways that individuals and individual households can be generous with what they have, and accept help in return. The flow of giving isn’t a one-way street from Christians to non-Christians, or from one family to another: it works best when everyone recognises the unique resources they have to offer that another household might be missing and also admits the gaps in their own resources that others might be able to fill.

Families can start by committing to passing on children’s clothes, toys and other equipment when finished with them. We can do a regular book swap with another family, so the kids get a variety of reading material. We can offer to mind one another’s children instead of paying for babysitters. People with skills like knitting or baking can teach others and share the surplus of what they produce. Instead of paying for extracurricular activities, we can offer to teach one another’s children things like music, sport or languages. We can start co-ops for buying fruit and vegetables in bulk. Those with organisational talents and free time can coordinate wider community activities like playgroups, book clubs, and a whole host of other activities.

Church leadership doesn’t have to be the driver of these kinds of good endeavours, but it really helps when they are supportive! Churches have a special opportunity to facilitate larger community projects in a way not available to a lot of other groups, perhaps through the provision of a meeting space or a group of volunteers. The church doesn’t always have to start something new. There are likely community groups like this in your area which could use support in these ways.

But if your church could start its own thing, here’s a list of more organised ways churches can be a central focus of community and help reduce the impact of rising prices:

• community food pantry
• community garden
• setting up a ‘buy nothing’/free-cycle group for your church community
• installing a ‘free little library’ box on church property
• running a kids’ clothes swap
• making spaces available for free or cheap to non-profit groups
• offering free ‘handy skills’ lessons about fixing things around the house
• partnering with a group already doing any of the above and encouraging members to volunteer and support that group.

So many of these things are really about organising and modelling what a generous attitude and a generous life look like. I think a lot of us in Australia don’t know how to be generous without feeling like we are somehow promoting ourselves or boasting. Having a community based on genuine give and take helps resolve that problem. This requires the humility that comes from faith in Jesus—to receive from others as well as give. Even those with not a lot of material possessions can offer time and energy in organising and facilitating these kinds of groups and systems.

Whether it’s through more structured programs, or informal giving between families, or a commitment to an attitude of generosity from a group of friends, I really do believe this is how we are meant to love and care for each other in the here and now of a world where interest rates bite and fresh vegetables get more expensive by the day. Community is what softens the landing when we fall. It gives an emotional cushioning, but it’s also a place we can ease the crush of financial and material struggles.

What James says in the passage above about faith hits on a key truth: people need Jesus, but we also have very real physical needs as well. We are embodied humans who struggle to feel God’s love when our physical body is hungry or tired or stressed to extremes. When we know God’s love, and have it displayed through the people around us, we are energised to display that love to others. We can share our lives, and also our things, because we know that everything we have comes from the God who gave even his Son. This is the love we have to share.

A longer version of this article was originally published on Rebecca Sharley’s 'Searching for Grace' newsletter.

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Rebecca Sharley is a trained primary school teacher with experience in kids’ and youth ministry. She runs training workshops in kids’ ministry and writes a newsletter called ‘Searching For Grace’ on Substack. She is the author of God’s Family Now: A New Look at Kids’ Ministry.

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