United We Stand

"Stand united, singular in vision, contending for people's trust in the Message, the good news. not flinching or dodging the slightest before opposition. You're courage and unity will show then what they're up against. defeat for them, victory for you-and both because of God." Philippians 1:27b-28 (The Message)

       We live in a day and age where we are divided in many ways. Red and Blue. Black or White. Pro-Choice or Pro-Life, and on and on. It seems like there are more things that separate us than unite us, and if we think hard enough about it there's a reason for it. If we are divided then we cannot make a meaningful difference in the world, so the enemy's cause is to divide our focus and our cause so that we cannot come together and stand as one, as Jesus stated in Mark 3:25, "A house divided against itself cannot stand."

         So we face a conundrum. What can unite us? The answer, if there is a cause to stand for and a message that could bring us together its the good news of Jesus Christ. Think about the non-violent movement propagated by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He urged his community to stand together believing in the Message of Christ's love, proclaiming that freedom was a just cause but violence was not. What did this movement end up establishing? A better prospect of hope for their future, and people began to see that love conquers hate.

         In order for us to be the force we need to be in this world, we must buy into the message of Christ and stand together in love. Dr. King would end up saying,"Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it."No wonder his legacy still is strong today, He promoted the message of love and united his community towards that end. What could we do if we stood for the same cause of love? The sky is the limit. Let the world see that united we stand in love!

-Amen