unity

I was in a contentious church council meeting one time when an elder said, “I’m sure there are a few things more important to God than unity in his church, but there probably aren’t very many. And I’m not even sure what they would be.”

I thought of that this morning when I read Psalm 133:

“How good and pleasant it is

when God’s people live together in unity!
It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
down on the collar of his robe.
It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the Lord bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore.”

God loves it when his people get along. He loves it as much as that aromatic, reverent act of anointing a high priest. Such unity brings abundant life, just like the dew that brings moisture to high mountain plants. And, the Psalmist says, God responds the same way, by giving us eternal life.

I think maybe we don’t give God enough to be happy about. Maybe if we prioritized unity as highly as we do getting our way, or not just being right but forcing everyone else to acknowledge we’re right, then we could do better. Sometimes it seems like Americans, and American Christians, are not only ready to fight at the drop of the hat, but they carry hats with them to drop.

I’m going to try it. For the next while, I’m going focus on peace-bringing and avoiding dissension. I’m going to try forget about how things turn out, and just think about how what we’re doing is affecting our relationships. I’m not sure what’s going to happen, but I’m interested to see.