Top Three Contributors To Church Unity

It was so great yesterday watching the multiple generations of our church family praying together. Little circles of prayer that formed at the end of the service that led us into communion...........Teens praying with senior adults, young adults praying with pre-teens......you get the picture. But what made it extra special was the fact we were praying the same prayer that Jesus prayed in John 17:20-23. The same prayer where Jesus prayed.......that we would be 'one' just as He and His Father are one and that we would be brought into complete unity.

It was the two teenage girls that came up to me after the service and said....'this is so great Pastor Dave. The seniors we prayed with were so kind to us. We felt so happy praying with them.'

The kids get it......there is a desire for unity........we are better together. There is a commanded blessing of life and favour upon all who choose to dwell together in unity. Check out Psalm 133 .

The fact is, unity is very important to Jesus. Since it is important to Jesus, it needs to be important to us. Where there is unity in the church, a family, a marriage there will be greater strength. The Bible says that 'a cord of three strands is not quickly broken.' Ecclesiasties 4:12

The opposite is true.......Matthew 12:25 'Every kingdom divided itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.'

The question is, how can we have greater unity? As I look back over 35 years of being a pastor, experiencing every aspect of church and family life immaginable, I asked my self the question: From my experience, what would be the top three contributers to unity? There were a quite a few on my list but here's my top three. If you would like to add to the list or give me your top three go ahead. Post your thoughts at the bottom.

Top Three Contributors To Unity

1. When We Pray For One Another
I remember hearing the story of one pastor / counselor who insisted that couples coming to him for counseling spend a half hour in prayer together in the prayer room before coming into his office. Inevitabley the counseling sessions were cut short. Barriers and obstacles were overcome. Faith for a united future was re-established.

There is something wonderful that happens in the Spirit when God's people will humble themselves and pray for one another. If there is someone you are struggling with, let me encourage you to begin praying for them and when possible, with them. Give it a try.

2. When We Forgive One Another
Getting hurt, happens. It happens all the time in relationships, including in the church. Unfortunatly I have watched too many people hold onto their hurts, nurse their hurts, justify their hurts to the point unity is destroyed. There is only one way to get it back and that is to do what Paul teaches here in........

Colossians 3:12 - 15 'Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.'

3. When We Celebrate Our Diversity
What makes the Body of Christ so special is the value and the contribution that each one brings to the church. We're not all the same. How many of you are glad about that? At the same time, while we are all so different, we really do need each other. We are interdependent on each other and therefore need to love and honour one another including all parts of the body. The Apostle Paul describes it this way.......

1 Corinthians 12:12, 24-27 'The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all it's parts are many they form one body........24 God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.'

When it comes to our diversity and having love for one another......I think St Augustine in the fourth century was on to something when he said: 'In essentials unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In all things, love.' We need to be careful when it comes to the things we allow to divide us.

The last thing I want to say is that unity takes effort. We have to work at unity because it goes so against our human and sinful nature. Paul said in Ephesians 4:3 ‘Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.’

Jesus made the effort for us so we could come into union and have a relationship with our Father God in Heaven. He died on a cross!!!!!

What about the relationships in your life, in our church, in the Body of Christ that need extra effort? Are you willing to make the effort. The blessing that comes with unity is worth it.

The kids get it. So should we.

Love in Christ
Pastor Dave

The One That Got Away

Let me tell you about the one that got away. I was fishing in the Puntledge River with my son and landed my first ever prize Coho salmon. I was pretty excited about the whole thing. Did what every fisherman does, knocked it on the head, gutted and cleaned the fish right on the side of the river. It was what happened next that I am almost embarrased to tell you. I layed the fish beside another fish we had caught earlier and with only a few minutes left before we had to head home, went back to fishing. A guy who had observed the whole thing wandered over to where we were, wanting to see the fish. My son said the fish was lying over by the rock next to another fish. The guy said...."There is only one fish." When we walked over to have a look, my heart sank with shock and disbelief. I couldn't believe it. What happened, even though we thought the fish was dead, there was still enough life in it's nervous system that caused it to flip a few times and with enough momentum it slid down the bank and back into the river. I can't tell you how terribly disappointed I was.

I thought there has to be a lesson in all of this. Well I came up with a few. One is just how easy it is for our old sinful nature to rise up within us from time to time. Just when we think we have died to sin and temptation is under control we find ourselves falling back into old habits and ways of thinking we thought we had left behind. It's like there is an attraction to get back into that old river again. How many of you can relate?

I am reminded of the words of Paul when he said: 'I die daily.' 1 Corinthians 15:31

Paul himself described his struggle with the sinful nature in Romans 7. .......But he also understood the grace of God at work in his life. He knew that his only hope was to continue to die daily, to crucify the old nature and allow the power of Christ to live and reign in his life. We can draw strength from his words when he said......Vs 24,25...... 'What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!' .......Who also gives us the victory. 1 Corinthians 15:57

I was also reminded how I need to help keep others from falling. The harvest needs to be protected.

I will be more careful next time I catch that Coho.

Happy Fishing
Dave

Getting Up When You Fall

This past week I was inspired by the story of Nick Vujicic, a young man that God is using to inspire others to not let their circumstances keep them from rising to their God given potential.

What makes his story unique is the fact that Nick was born with no limbs. It was at a point of great hopelessness and dispair even to the point when he considered suicide, that God encouraged him to focus on what he had not on what he did not have.

I want to encourage you to not let anything keep you down. Whether it's fear, discouragement, past defeats, addictions, disappointments, circumstances, entangling sins, wrong relationships, bitterness....the list is long.

All of these and more can cause you to stumble and fall, but with Christ you can overcome. Your steps can be firm. You can rise to your potential. You can be everything God intended you to be.

Philippians 4:13 'I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.'



'The lord delights in the way of the man whose steps he has made firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.' Psalm 37:23,24

Encourage someone this week.

Blessings
Pastor Dave

A Great Message

This past Sunday Pastor Mike Bidell shared a great message on what it means to minister to God through worship.

As believers we are part of Gods 'Royal Priesthood' with a responsbility to be worshippers.

If you get a chance to listen to the message not only will it bless you but it will encourage you in your priesthood ministry. Check out the link from our website.

http://app.razorplanet.com/acct/40500-0597/tmpl/index.php?nid=15956&s=gl&media_id=401648&showMedia=a&preview=true

Trust you are enjoying our great Vancouver Island summer.

Blessings
Pastor Dave