[gather] together

I was frantic. Frantic about a lot of things in preparation for the move to New York City, but one uncertainty loomed larger than the rest. It loomed larger because of its importance to my well-being, and my doubt that I could ever have anything as strong as what I came from back home. It loomed larger because I was about to move to a city of 8 million strangers and because I believe people need people. This thing that so loomed, was community. 

But somewhere in my frantic heart, whispered the never-frantic voice of the God. He gently reminded me that He had spent the past two years teaching me how to cultivate the very community I craved. He told me I could go to New York and fearlessly use what He had been teaching the whole time. I could gather women together and create space for Him to grow things and pour out love. I could invite women into a space of conversation, celebration, vulnerability, and relationship.

I’ll never get over how powerful it is when women link arms and stand shoulder to shoulder. When women raise each other up instead of tear each other down. The walls that come down and the healing that is brought when women use their gentle yet incredibly fierce spirits to love the world.  

Within the first week of school, I had met five women who were passionate and fierce and loving. They quickly became my friends and readily committed to begin meeting each week to read scripture and dig into our questions and brokenness. But quickly also, came the Lord’s voice again. Telling me that we needed to reach out. We needed to create more space, more seats at the table. There were more women to be loved on than just the ones who sat in my little living room and ate warm bagels with me over their Bibles on Saturday mornings.

I think there is a desire deeply rooted in the hearts of all people - to be known. But in a city like New York it is often a desire unfulfilled. And party after party seemed to prove the same things to me over and over again - you can meet a lot of people, but still lack being deeply and truly known. You can have numerous conversations but never dig past the surface. And this lack of deep-seated relationships produced an isolation and loneliness that seemed to consume my own heart, as well as those around me.  And slowly but surely, we all began to realize the same things. 

One, that women around us were hungry for community, longing to be known. And two, that authentic, intentional, rich, past-the-surface conversations about issues we want to be talking about, weren’t happening in a space that felt safe, yet impactful. 

And so, [gather] was born.

Our first event fell around Christmas time, so we had holiday food and a hot chocolate bar and we put the word out to friends and I honestly didn’t think anyone would come and maybe I’d just have a lot of food to eat by myself for the rest of the week. Instead, twenty girls trekked through the snowstorm we had that day to gather together. We prepared questions and talked about how we can be better at raising each other up, and the things we faced as females in the city and country. How we can be better at slowing down and encountering people in a city where walking speed is rushing and we have headphones in and heads down. We talked about the Christmas story, the way Jesus came to encounter us, when He could have just let us pass by. Girls from all different walks of life and faith gathered in my little living room and helped bring to fruition one of the sweetest gifts I have known here.

A few weeks ago we hosted a love themed event in honor of February. This time, thirty plus girls squeezed in to talk relationships, friendship, love, sex, and dating. Girls formed friendships and brought things previously hidden in darkness out into the light. And some saw and felt a community rise up around them, and heard of the Greatest Love there is and His model for us on the cross, the reason why so many of us in that room are able to love the way we do. 

Now, [gather] is happening on other college campuses, an event in New Orleans is happening this week. We are talking of hosting a two-day event later this year for even more women. Girls from campuses elsewhere and back in my home, echo the need and are deciding to create the space. My team and I are putting together resources so this can spread far and wide and reach women all over. So women feel empowered to create the space, reach out, and invite others in. Stepping into that decision to meet others where they are is one of the best you can make. I am so excited to see what happens. 

If you’re reading this, if something is tugging on your heart, if you want to do something like this on your campus or in your community, here is my offer, sister. Reach out to me in the “Say Hel[lo]” tab up top, or in the boxes right below, and I will send you resources so we can begin to reach more women and usher them into a place where they are loved and heard and known. Where they can know a Love like no other. You will be fully equipped to do this. Host a [gather] where you are. Let’s partner. Let’s [gather].

Stay tuned for a website with all of our online resources, stories, and more - coming soon!