I’m the first to admit that our marriage isn’t always great. I’m also willing to admit that the times we’re not doing so well are usually my fault. A relationship is hard work, it’s constant work, and always an uphill effort. But a great marriage is worth doing the mahi for. I have to choose to preserve unity in our marriage.
Kathy and I have always grown through our times of struggle and the good news is we’ve grown together — we’ve grown closer instead of growing apart. Not everyone does, and sometimes we wondered if we would. But here we are after twenty-five years, still growing.
Being divided is never a way forward for those who are committed to each other.
Being divided is never a way forward for those who are committed to each other. In the same way this applies to our personal relationships, it also applies to our church and our nation.
We live in crazy times like none before — we are living in a global pandemic of health, emotion, and economy, where life as we know it is threatened. This is not the time to be enforcing mandates that seek to divide and conquer, and yet that is what we witness. How we respond to this environment is what will determine how we live.
I want to make my views crystal clear; I am not happy to support decisions that highlight the diversity of position within our community. I am not happy to make leadership decisions that may promote discrimination. And I definitely do not intend to build structure that could pour fuel on the fire of segregation of community. This leans toward apartheid in its truest form and I, for one, am not willing to support it.
Division only results in weakness that leads to brokenness. I weep for the fragmentation of our nation and I will do my best to ensure this brokenness is not promoted in our church community.
Many of my friends who are church leaders are discussing how they can begin hosting church gatherings under the current vax/non-vax (*) rules for Faith Communities. It appears the current rules stipulate the segregation of those who are vaccinated from those who are not. For some church leaders this means they will choose to host “vax only” church services, while finding an alternate venue to gather the “non-vax.” This just does not sit right with me, and therefore, I will be doing my best to ensure this is not what we create for ZION.
(* Please excuse my jargon here, I mean no disrespect to neither the vaccinated nor the non-vaccinated. This is just a simple way for me to define the segregation I am speaking against.)
What does the Bible say to help us preserve unity?
At the risk of getting my “preach” on, I must point us to scripture. Paul spoke against division in his letter to the church in Ephesus. You can guess why — he had to speak against the attitudes, behaviour and segregation in that community. We can choose to embrace unity or we can contribute to the division.
In Ephesians chapter 4 Paul pleads with the church to “live a life that measures up to the standard God set when he called you.” He makes it clear he is writing from prison as an example of one who chose the higher path. He’s basically saying, “I only ask you to live the way I have chosen to live.”
Let’s be better than the rhetoric and propaganda others are sharing.
Paul continues and says, “Be always humble, gentle, and patient. Show your love by being tolerant with one another.” Oh wow, if only we would condition ourselves this way and restrain our behaviour with tolerance. Some of the most unchristian content I have ever seen online has been posted by Christians in this recent pandemic season. To be humble means to put yourself before God as He sees you, like Paul, as a “prisoner of the Lord.” Come on people, be better than the rhetoric and propaganda others are sharing.
Maintain your commitment to each other and the good of the church, as Paul continues. “Do your best to preserve the unity which the Spirit gives by means of the peace that binds you together.”
To preserve unity means to make the effort to keep us together. In the same way I can choose to keep my marriage bonds with Kathy healthy and strong, (or not), we must choose to try our very best to keep the church community connected together. The Amplified translators added some words to try and help us see the point of the author; “[each individual working together to make the whole successful].” Our behaviour contributes to the health of the body of Jesus, (the church), or it makes it weaker. You get to choose your personal response, so choose wisely.
Make a point to note that it is the Spirit (the Holy Spirit) who gives the unity. This is God the Spirit binding us together using His peace as the bond that binds us. Think of God’s peace like a rope that ties us together, which is His desire for us. Does your life feel like you are experiencing His peace right now? If not, do an audit of those things in your life that are affecting your peace and ask the Lord to help you remove those inputs (which includes people) who are stealing your peace.
Let’s get practical
Go on, do what Paul says, do your best to preserve unity. Here are some suggestions on how you might do this, hopefully a few of these ideas will help.
- Get yourself before the Lord in prayer, often. More than daily. Even try praying without ceasing. Be careful to listen more than you talk, and this will ensure you are hearing what the Lord is saying to you.
- Remove negative inputs. There was a season in my life where I had to “drop” some friends who were just bad for me. Don’t be one who sabotages your peace for the sake of someone else who is not helping you.
- Create a habitation of worship. Surround yourself with music that centres your focus on Jesus and His Lordship. When you do this, fear and other destruction forces will recede. Trust me, they will.
- Reach out with intention to connect with others. Isolation does not require disconnection, so please do your best to build connection with your loved ones, your church community, and others.
- Resolve points of difference with others, where possible, through the sharing of your heart and a commitment to pray with each other.
- Where differences remain, spend more time together in prayer. This is not about “converting” the other to your side of the narrative, but building connection in prayer with the Holy Spirit binding you in His peace.
- Commit to connection and ask someone to hold you accountable to your commitment. When we invite external accountability we increase our likelihood of success in our endeavours to honour our commitments.
While encouraging you to take a deep look at yourself and asking you to make a commitment to preserve unity, I will do the same. In addition to embracing the action items above, I will also make a firm resolution as a local church leader.
My personal commitment to preserve unity
It is my intention to present a proposal to our ZION Elders on how we will move forward under the current framework for community engagement, which seems to be imposing segregation of people — this is not preserving unity and therefore not in line with our beliefs.
As a church we seek to welcome all into our midst, to be non-judging, loving, and willing to disciple one another in Truth (God’s Word) in a way that helps us all to live in a way that honours Jesus as Lord.
My proposal will not be encouraging a fragmentation of our unity, rather seeking to work within the bounds of the Government guidelines without promoting disconnection and division. It is highly likely we will need to make decisions that do not meet all of our needs, and may require a change in thinking for many of us. But I feel that forming a framework for our faith community that preserves unity and forms bonds in peace is a far better example for those who are watching how we choose to live. (Remember, our lives are the only testimony of Jesus many people bear witness to!)
For now, let us each consider how we are living in a way that is worthy of the high calling of Jesus — He gave His life so that we could bear witness to Him. This is a privilege that comes with eternal fringe benefits while also bringing seasons of temporary suffering.
To close, let us not allow a divide to come between us. Instead, I encourage every one of us to make a firm resolution to preserve unity in peace.