During 1997-1998 I was a part of a community house on Oakridge Housing Estate in Basingstoke. There were 3 of us living in community, and we had moved to the area as it was a place of great social and spiritual need with virtually total unemployment, great drug and other substance abuse issues, many of the kids on the 'at risk' register and a high proportion of young single mothers.

Each member of the community worked part time jobs in the local area and we lived in a rhythm of prayer, service, hospitality and sabbath. We ministered alongside the local church in the area mainly spending our time working with children and young parents, and a large number of people with learning difficulties who were housed in a community house on the estate.

Our home was open to everyone, we fed kids whose parents threw them out in the morning and didnt let them come home until after dark, we helped young mums to get access to benefits and services that would help them to grow and develop, and we spent a lot of long hours prayer walking the estate.

It was hard work. Living life sharing all you have (or trying to) was not easy and we learnt a lot about each other and ourselves, sometimes in hard ways. But, the moments of Gods faithfulness - such as the many many occasions on which we'd emptied our cupboards and had no money left to buy anymore food to give to the kids, only to open the door the next morning and find boxes of food in abundance on our doorstep - shone brightly and increased our faith to believe for community restoration, even in the hardest moments.

Community Living - hard, but worth it.