This morning I mowed our front and back lawn. I’ve been mowing yards since it was my first job at the age of 10 (when I could hand over a quarter and fill my gas can). I’ve always enjoyed so much about this kind of work: figuring out how to geometrically divide the lawn around bushes and buildings to use my time most efficiently, the smell of freshly mown grass, and the “think time.”
There is a modern civil war in America between those who carry the banner of “diversity” and those who seek unity for the nation. What does God think about all of this? The Bible gives a clear answer.
I’ve enjoyed being unified in my relationships with others throughout my life. I was unified into a wonderful family with a great Dad and Mom and all eight of us kids. I was unified with my Boy Scout troop, my school class, and my soccer team. Later I was unified with my wife Sherry and our son Elijah. These are all relationships that endeavor to live the old motto “all for one and one for all.”
I came of marriageable age in the 1970s when “free love” and “women’s lib” were redefining society’s view of marriage. At the same time, a revival of interest in God, Jesus, and the Bible promoted conflicting viewpoints on the same subject.
In the middle of this tumultuous era, I got married. And only by God’s grace, mercy, and love, we are still married today—36 years later. Having traversed the rocky terrain of popular opinion and made our way across flooding rivers of human passion and emotion, we now have a life together built firmly in sweet fellowship with our heavenly Father that we will cherish the rest of our days.
Live for God
Open your heart to God above
And don’t ever look back or be condemned.
You’re now His son, so bask in love.
Get up and move and live for Him!
The Bible asks a good question.
Amos 3:3:
Can two walk together, except they be agreed?
In Branded by God, Part 1, we established that keeping the unity of the spirit, “…starts with recognizing that each and every born again believer is a member of the body of Christ,” and “no individual believer is any ‘better’ than another, and none is of less value.” That is the essence of the lowliness and meekness toward God and one another that we need to keep the unity of the spirit.
How Are We Supposed to “Keep the Unity of the Spirit” in This Dark World?
You may have been a member of the boy scouts, coach of a soccer team, teacher in a high school, or part of an army battalion. All of these organizations require that the members work together to accomplish a common goal. Even the coaches of opposing soccer teams must be unified to make the soccer season a success.
What Brand of Christian Are You?
What brand of cereal did you have for breakfast this morning, Kellogg’s or Post?