Unity is something we all need to be successful, physical and spiritual. Unity is in more movies than people realize. Few examples are war movies like Braveheart or Saving Private Ryan to sport movies like Might Ducks or Miracle. In these movies all the characters communicate to each other knowing the plan, move as one unit. Think of the flying v from mighty ducks and how smooth it goes. Cause ducks fly together! ?
My good friend Webster tells me that unity as totality of related parts: an entity that is a complex or systematic whole. Where do we all look for unity? Are we looking in the right places? Some of us find it playing sports or on teams, group of friends, at the work place, or at church. Not saying any of these things are bad it’s a good picture of unity and being as one. Where the perfect picture of that example is the body of believers from the first church right after Pentecost. Can you imagine the oneness the believers had? Read Acts 2 & 3 for more of a picture this is. ?
This past month being in Kosovo I saw this and felt apart of this unity. Everyday of ministry our contact and his team would come and pray for about an hour; we would join them. We were praying a lot. Once a week an evening prayer service would happen. Geni, his team and the people they were pouring into would come before the Lord asking favor in his will. During all these pray meetings they spent hours each week enjoying his presence and asking that his will would be done and crying out for these people. Even though language barrier was hard at times, I could tell that their hearts broke for these people. Can you imagine meeting everyday with fellow believers to ask that his will would be done and the Holy Spirit would be guiding them and to be unified with him? No one in America (from what I have seen) does not do this. This was something new to me for me to see and going into next month, is something my team will need. ?Halfway through the month all the believers in the city come together as one unit to pray for the city and for divine appointments from the Lord. The city of Gjilan is about the same size as my hometown of Missoula, Montana about 65,000. In Kosovo there are not many believers but the unity between them all was encouraging. There were bout 24 to 36 believers praying. If believers come together for a jolly good time would that be unity? Sure it would be a great time, but nothing would get done! ?We as believes need to start coming together as one. Paul says quite well in 1 Corithianths 12??
“For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.”
(Some local believers)
Same thing as in hockey I am a goalie I do not belong to the team or I am a private I do not belong in the army. What a lie that is!! Those are important parts of the team or army. Same thing with us as believers. We need to start. Getting in this mind set of moving as one unit. ?Think of it is this, as followers of Jesus were not as a tight community or as one and a non-follower of Jesus saw; he would not want anything to do with Jesus. If we were as one unit and a non-follower saw it, he would be drawn to it. That is exactly what happens in Acts 2. What a beautiful picture. Will you join me this month (beyond too) and be united with me? It would be such a story if we did. ?
This month my team is doing Unsung Heroes where we look for ministries who are doing amazing things for the Kingdom and we want to acknowledge them. Seeing if they would like to partner with the World Race. We have no contact this month and we are hoping to be that beautiful picture of Acts 2. Relying fully on the Lord to provide everything, grow together as a unit, give us contacts, and show and tell the good news. If you joined me in unity at home, can you imagine what that would do for your community?
(God is Love in Albanian)
