Hold us Together


1 Peter 3:8-(MSG)-Summing up: Be agreeable, be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that’s your job, to bless. You’ll be a blessing and also get a blessing.

Last winter my husband became a head coach for the girl’s basketball team.  I was happy for him because he got to do something he loves to do and he was getting paid for his hobby, but sometimes I felt resentful of how much time it took.  I wished I could have as much time for my own interests.  Why can it be so hard to quit thinking of ourselves and just be glad for someone else?

This type of thinking too easily lead to bitterness, which one definition says is “distressing to the mind” and it certainly is! The thoughts of judgement and frustration don’t come from God. In John 10:10, Jesus says, “The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. But I came to give life—life that is full and good.”

When asked about the greatest commandments Jesus said,  “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30-31 (NIV)  No commandments greater than these? This is huge! Being happy for others and loving them well is the pathway to experience  the full, good life Jesus came to give us.  God gave us these commandments because he loves us and wants the best for us.

My full support of Mark and what he is involved with is what holds us together. I also found while he was gone coaching, I did have some extra time to do the things I loved.  I read scripture and books by Christian women.  The dream God put in my heart to write grew during those winter months.  Many nights Maycee went to bed by 8 and I had time to write.  I am a restless person and if I had been given big chunks of time for writing, I probably wouldn’t have appreciated them.  Since I only had an hour here or there to write, I learned to absolutely treasure the time and squeezed out the value of every minute.  
God created the right situations for what I needed, but I didn’t realize it at the time.  Months later, as I am writing this, I am finally seeing it for the gift that is was.  I am so humbled and sorry for how often I don’t see his generosity when he blesses others and my own blessings don’t come the way I expect them to.   

We can’t always see the whole picture or God’s hand moving in our lives.  That is why we must pray for the Spirit to lead us to help trust in His ways so we feel happy with how He chooses to give blessings.

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.’ Ephesians 4:31-32




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