Me:  Howdy Prodigal!  Who are you with today, they all look a lot alike.

 

Prodigal:  This here is the duck family.  They do look the same but still they are a little different.  They wanted to hear one of your stories.

 

Me:  Well today we have words from Chuck Swindoll in his book Hope Again When Life Hurts and Dreams Fade.

 

A unit is a team, folks.  No more brother-bashing.  No more sister-smashing.  No more ugly gossip groups.  No more sarcastic, judgmental put downs.  Jesus prayed that we would support and encourage and love and forgive each other until we are perfected into a unit.

Unity.  That’s what He desires for us.  Not uniformity, but unity; oneness, not sameness.  We don’t have to look alike.  We don’t even have to think alike.  The body is made up of many different parts.  He doesn’t even pray for unanimity.  We can disagree.  Every vote doesn’t have to be 100 percent.  But we must be a unit:  our eyes on the same goal, our hearts in the same place, our commitment at the same level.  And we must love each other.

 

Guess what I am a little different than you and God loves that!  We can love each other, follow Jesus and still not vote the same way.  Nobody should be just like me (Jesus made sure I wasn’t a twin for a reason).

I am encouraged when I can be myself even if that means I am the only girl within a 10 mile radius checking the scores to the game.  God wants you to feel comfortable if you are rolling your eyes and having no interest in the sports score that I am checking every five minutes.  We can still follow Jesus and we can still encourage each other!

 

John 13:34-35

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.  By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.

 

Jennifer Van Allen

 

www.theprodigalpig.com

www.faithincounseling.org