God doesn't need us to accomplish His work—never has, never will. But the amazing thing is He chose to include us. He designed us to partner together to accomplish more as a team than we ever could alone.
We live in a world that's more connected than ever, yet loneliness is at an all-time high.
We live in a world that's more connected than ever, yet loneliness is at an all-time high. It’s been called an “epidemic” in the United States, and for good reason.
The global Church shows us a different way. We were made to work together. The global and local church is a rich and diverse tapestry, each of them reinforcing and enriching the ones around it. The Church brings together every kind of person you can imagine. But it doesn't just gather us—it unites us in a way that nothing else can.
Paul puts it this way in Galatians: “[In] Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
We can’t do this Christian life alone.
We need Him, and we need each other. We can’t do this Christian life alone. In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he lays out God’s plan for how we work together:
“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good,” Paul writes.
“For the body does not consist of one member but of many. …But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.”
When we partner together, we multiply our impact—and when God's involved, that multiplication becomes something miraculous. This is where technology can serve as a powerful tool for the Kingdom.
Technology gives us unprecedented ways to collaborate as the global Church.
Technology gives us unprecedented ways to collaborate as the global Church. The tools are there to bring us closer than ever, but it takes intentionality to use them for Kingdom purposes. At YouVersion, we've seen this firsthand. Our network has grown to over 31,000 partners, including 7,224 content partners and more than 25,000 churches.
World-changing partnerships don't start at a global scale. They start locally in our churches.
But here's the thing: world-changing partnerships don't start at a global scale. They start locally in our churches, our neighborhoods, our homes. Real Kingdom impact begins with the relationships we're building right where we are.
When local churches are healthy and actively serving their communities, they become a powerful force globally. People who are walking closely with Jesus and investing in authentic relationships are what transforms the world.
God invites us into His work through relationship with Him and with each other. When we bring our unique gifts together, something powerful happens. We stay unified and create real change, even when the world around us feels increasingly divided.
Bobby Gruenewald is the founder and CEO of YouVersion and serves as pastor and innovation leader at Life.Church.
