Together: Into or in relationship with, in unity, one
If you had only one prayer left and could ask for anything, what would you ask for?
Two years ago, I was faced with the same question. I was spending time in prayer and heard the reoccurring words on my heart.
If you could ask for only one thing, what would you ask for?
My answer? Love.
I don’t think I really understood what I was asking for other than I knew that Love was the greatest and without it everything else is meaningless, pointless, empty. But with it is everything. But what exactly is something where “with it is everything” How do you even understand that?
On the race God has been giving me words each month that capture the character of the three words Faith, Hope, and Love from 1 Corinthians 13. I’ve had one word a month finishing with this last month. The first few months were describing the character of Hope, the next few months Faith, and the last months Love. Here are the words for the year:
Patience
Wait
Abide
HOPE
Confidence
Believe
Remember
FAITH
Redeem
Authority
Together
LOVE
The final word describing Love was Together. This is the greatest:
When I arrived in Kyrgyzstan I was completely empty. I had pushed and pushed and pushed through the last 9 months never saying no and, to my demise, not making rest a priority (completely my fault) The continual change in culture, travel, pressure of learning new surroundings, team challenges, and outreach had taken its toll mentally, spiritually, and physically. I have never been more exhausted in my life. I would sleep for nearly 14 hours every day and still feel exhausted. I tried to play soccer and after two minutes of running my body gave out and was shaking from fatigue. (This is NOT normal, I can normally run for hours) I knew something wasn’t right. I had no energy, I couldn’t engage with anyone for more than an hour or two each day. I was spent.
At one point, I was down on my floor curled up and nearly crying. Why? Why am I so tired? Why am I so exhausted? I can’t do anything! Even though everything inside of me wants to keep going. I can’t.
Then…
I am right here with you. I’m not leaving.
My thoughts and anxiety ceased. God is here. He’s not leaving. He is sitting right next to me. He’s not leaving, He’s just waiting. He’s with me.
In this moment the whole race experience collapsed over me. Learning to hear God’s voice has been one of the most amazing blessings in my life. I’ve learned more about who He is and His love for us this year than my past 22 combined. Even though He has always been there in my life guiding me, speaking to me, holding me, this year gave me the chance to step completely away from the world and focus only on Him. Now, here, lying on the floor completely exhausted He speaks again.
I am with you.
I wrestled a lot with loneliness over the course of the month. It was hard knowing everyone else on my team was running ahead meeting with students, teaching English classes, and sharing the gospel with other students. Meanwhile, I was at home. I was trying to figure out how to recover. But even when you’re not out on the frontlines, preaching, praying, doing ministry, or even just living life… God is with you. Even when you feel beat up and tossed aside, He’s still here. He’s out on the front lines, and He’s in the medical tent holding your hand when you’re wounded.
The next few weeks my Best Friend God and I spent time together slowly resting and recovering so that I could once again have enough energy to make it through the day. I sat and prayed, or just sat outside in the sunshine, or would go for a walk (30 minutes left me exhausted). But He was there doing it with me, encouraging me each step I took in resting and recovering.
So, what is Love?
Well, one thing it is is being together. Being with each other, doing things together, supporting each other, sitting with each other not just one alone but two, or three. Relationship. Sometimes that means just sitting with someone, or enjoying their presence, or going for a walk, or talking with that person. Sometimes it’s getting them a glass of water or doing the dishes or saying an encouraging word to let them know you are thinking of them and they aren’t alone.
Think about your friends, your family. What do you do together? Do you spend time playing games, sharing meals, going on trips together, or maybe just sitting in the shade together? Whatever it is, you do it together. This is the picture of what God wants with us. He wants to be with us. It’s really that simple. Just be with Him.
And if you could ask for only one thing, what would you ask for?
Jesus, in some of His final prayers and words while still on this earth prayed this:
My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
John 17
“All of them may be one, just as you are in me and I am in you.”
Jesus’ heart and prayer for us is that we would be one. That we would be together with each other in unity and in love. There is great joy in walking together with our brothers and sisters in community. There is also nothing greater in all the world than to walk side by side with our Creator. He leads, He guides, He stays by our side through it all.
Do you know what this is like? Do you have that type of relationship with your Father?
God’s not interested in the paragraphs that we recite. It’s easy for us to memorize verses and scripture (not a bad thing) or to memorize characteristics of God and repeat them back. To learn a story and repeat the story to others our whole life. But do you live the story? Have you experienced it? Do you have that type of relationship Jesus talks about in being one with your Father?
God isn’t interested in the paragraph we recite. He’s interested in knowing us, and us knowing Him. He wants relationship with us. He wants to sit with us. He wants to be with us.
Immanuel.
God with us.
If you don’t know God or don’t know what it’s like to have this relationship with him then I encourage you to just pray and ask Him to show you. You’re forgiven. He paid the price. He loves you so much He sent His Son to die for you, WHY?
Because He wants to be with you. He loves you.
Talk to God today. What keeps you from walking with Him? He wants to walk with you. He wants to be with you.
TOGETHER
With Faith, Hope, and Love
Nathan
“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
“Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.
“Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you[e] known to them and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”
John 17:20-26
