How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, down upon the collar of his robes. It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. For there the Lord bestows His blessing, even life forevermore. Psalm 133
I have been thinking about this Psalm for a while. I think about it as I watch my children interact with one another. I think about it when I interact with my husband. I think about it as I operate within a worship team. Basically, in all areas of life I consider this verse.
When my children are getting along and playing together it feels like such a relief. I notice when that happens something in the air feels lighter and I feel more established. But when they fight and fuss, I feel a stark and contrasting heaviness. Likewise, when Chris and I are having a time of understanding each other and working well together, it can feel like there’s nothing we can’t accomplish as long as we’re together. But when we have conflict, I feel the friction of needing to reconnect and restore the unity that once was. When a worship team comes together in unity you can definitely feel it. It creates an open door for the Holy Spirit to move and speak so clearly. When they are not together, you feel it too. The disconnect is louder than the sound of music. Times of unity are powerful in any area of life.
While these moments of unity are beautiful, they can ebb and flow. It’s hard to walk out unity all the time, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.
In life I’ve found there are bridge builders, those who destroy bridges and others who seem to want to block bridges. If we’re all honest, we would admit that at times we’ve been all of these. Whether it was a place of wounding in our heart or a bitterness we held onto, or simply immaturity, we’ve all blocked or destroyed bridges at one time or another. I know I have. I’m not proud of it. But I have grown a lot and now I make very deliberate decisions to help build bridges.
Unity takes deliberateness and purposeful humility. We can’t say we want to become unified as the church (universal) and then only talk. We must have actions to back up our words.
Riots and yelling don’t lead to unity, they lead away from it. Nothing can satisfy the spirit that is leading riots, and it’s actually holding all those participating in bondage. Avoiding conflict doesn’t lead to unity, it delays it. Fear doesn’t lead to unity, peace does. We need to re-think our actions and begin to walk out life more deliberately
Prayer Moment: God, I ask that Your Spirit fall upon America and extinguish all the fires of rebellion that have sparked. Lord, we need You to unify us now. Breathe Your breath of hope and joy over the earth. God show each one of us what role we can play to bring unity in the kingdom of God. Teach us how to walk in Your truth and the power of Your Spirit. You make us bold in a way that leads to unity, so give us holy boldness. I love You, Lord. Guide my heart and guard me from being deceived. In Jesus name, Amen.
Rich and poor have this in common: The Lord is the Maker of them all. A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it. Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life. In the paths of the wicked lie thorns and snares, but he who guards his soul stays far from them. Train a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not turn from it. Proverbs 22:2-6
365 Days in the Presence 