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“Therefore I, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, accepting one another in love, diligently keeping the unity of the Spirit with the peace that binds us.”
[Ephesians 4:1-3 HCSB]
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The call
Recently I taught through a series of passages that challenge Christians to make new relationships and repair old ones. The responses I received have affected me strongly, leading to great praise for the Lord and appreciation for my brethren.
For example, many notes described a scene like this phone call to an estranged sibling:
And so, I knew I needed to call her. I will never ever forget the verse that was in my head as the phone rang. “If God is for me, who can be against me!”
She answered!!
Me: Hi Sis!! How are you?
Sister: Is that you? Sis, is that you? Then she started crying. I started crying because I knew it made her so happy to hear my voice…
We talked for more than an hour.
Trust and obey
Of course, the Lord doesn’t always give such immediately positive outcomes. Nonetheless, it is always a blessing to do what He commands and trust Him with the results. As Romans 12 reminds us:
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. [Romans 12:16-18 ESV]
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