Like anyone, I’m prone to make things about me. It’s easy to make assumptions about others, but the trick is in how we interpret what we see. I do better when I stop to assess if my assumptions are based on pride or pity. Am I being passive or am I pioneering new ways of thinking? Is my perspective based on trusting and treasuring Christ?

Let’s be honest. We have differences. Age, ethnicity, gender, marital status, background, personality, job experience, strengths and spiritual gifts. Every one of us has stories of feeling like an outsider, a pioneer of new trails or just being different. Do you wear your differences as badges of honor or shame? Are you trusting that each difference has the potential to help you tell God’s story?

Jesus stood out as different from those He served. Some loved Him for the differences. Some despised and rejected Him. Knowing His identity and purpose, He pioneered a new trail, not dependant on the approval or acceptance of others.

What we share with one another is a common need for grace and for Jesus to be in His rightful place in our lives. When He calls us, Jesus calls us into His family and mission. We become “fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel” (Ephesians 3:6). This is God’s unfolding plan to reveal how wise He is and how amazing Jesus is. That’s the story we get to share.

“Although God ultimately causes our growth, God has chosen the community to facilitate that growth! Jesus is Lord not merely of individual wheat stalks but also of the self-nurturing field. We grow together. If we do not share life together, we stunt the growth of the church. In order to nurture the field and increase the harvest, we must be involved in one another’s lives. This means surrendering our “rights” to individualistic privacy, convenience and comfort.” Jonathan Dodson, Gospel Centered Discipleship

We need one another. That’s why this year’s Women’s Ministries’ theme is Cross-Centered Relationships. It’s all about growing in understanding how to live in harmony across the lines that might otherwise divide us. When we look to Jesus and connect with each other at a heart level, we experience growing confidence that we fit because of who we share in common. It’s all about Him, not us.

Andrea Tyson is Women's Ministries Director at New Hope Church. She loves to invest in women who are investing in others as we continue to develop a culture of walking toward Jesus and taking others with us.