"Be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowances for each other's faults because of your love. Always keep yourselves united in the Holy Spirit and bind yourselves together with peace." -Ephesians 4:2-3
Yep, God uses 2x4's to get my attention...right upside the head! Apparently subtlety is lost on me. If only I had been reminded of the truths found in Ephesians chapter four LAST week, it would have saved a lot of heartache.
Imagine what our churches would be like if we could all remember Paul's admonition. Imagine if we gave one another the benefit of the doubt, being patient and wanting the best in our fellow believers. Imagine if peace were truly the glue that held us together. How different would our churches look? How much more effective would we be in reaching the lost?
The enemy rarely uses outside influences to cause disunity in a church body. Unfortunately, he uses us against one another. We suddenly lose sight of our own faults and weaknesses (which are many!) and begin to zero in on other's faults. No humbleness or gentleness there - we become part of the problem rather than part of the solution. It's no different now than it was in Paul's day. Yes, I'm preaching to myself here...sometimes it's the best audience.
God forgive me for ever being part of the problem.
Yep, God uses 2x4's to get my attention...right upside the head! Apparently subtlety is lost on me. If only I had been reminded of the truths found in Ephesians chapter four LAST week, it would have saved a lot of heartache.
Imagine what our churches would be like if we could all remember Paul's admonition. Imagine if we gave one another the benefit of the doubt, being patient and wanting the best in our fellow believers. Imagine if peace were truly the glue that held us together. How different would our churches look? How much more effective would we be in reaching the lost?
The enemy rarely uses outside influences to cause disunity in a church body. Unfortunately, he uses us against one another. We suddenly lose sight of our own faults and weaknesses (which are many!) and begin to zero in on other's faults. No humbleness or gentleness there - we become part of the problem rather than part of the solution. It's no different now than it was in Paul's day. Yes, I'm preaching to myself here...sometimes it's the best audience.
God forgive me for ever being part of the problem.
I think I'm going to write that verse and post it in my house. We are having some issues of needing to be patient with one anothers faults RIGHT HERE. Don't need to go all the way to church to find those challenges! *sigh*
ReplyDeleteThis is the third time this week this verse has come up. I think God is trying to tell me something.
ReplyDeleteShari