The Love That Unites Us

A couple months ago I had one of those strange trains of thought that makes you wonder if all your marbles are in the right place. It took me to the South Seas, to Greece, back to England and beyond.

It started as I read the excellent VT commentary by Daniel Macaraeg last November. Near the end of his commentary he cited Ecclesiastes 12:13: "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man's all." To me this verse encapsulates the unadulterated essence of life, which is why it found its way to my wall.

My wall holds other writings as well: the Ten Commandments and two prayers by Robert Louis Stevenson from his book Prayers Written at Vailima.

My eyes wandered from Ecclesiastes to focus on one of the prayers. A beautiful prayer, "For Success," was apparently written for the start of the day. Stevenson offers thanks to God for the help he has received "in this foreign isle" before proceeding to ask that God grant him the abilities required to see the day through.

I like that prayer mainly for its introduction and the emphasis that Stevenson places on being in a foreign land with his family. I can't help but draw a parallel with my situation as a Greek living in the United Kingdom. Unfortunately, my family is still back in Greece. I dearly miss them, although we do speak daily and keep each other apprised of our current situations. Family is very important to me, and I am looking forward to when I shall be given the opportunity to start my own.

However, I am not the only one who believes that family is important. God also promotes the benefits of the family structure. He had already started working on His family long before any of us first gasped for air. God introduced the idea of the family unit when the earth's population was still in the single digits. God established love as the invisible force that holds a family together. Through His love for us, God allowed His Son to be sacrificed. It was love—for His then (and now) foolish human siblings—by which Jesus Christ offered Himself to be crucified as the Savior of all mankind.

"We thank Thee… for the love that unites us…" is an excerpt from the second sentence of Robert Louis Stevenson's prayer. The love that binds our physical families together also unites God's family and helps sustain it.

Even though my parents are not here with me, I enjoy the company of my brothers and sisters in Christ. It is an amazing feeling to walk into a room full of "strangers" yet know that you are family. I would like you to read about that family by downloading or requesting the excellent, free booklet The Church Jesus Built.

As with human families, we have our little differences, but what prevails is the love that unites us. It is this love—God's perfect love—that binds us together and gives us a foretaste of the perfection of His soon-coming, divine Kingdom.

I am grateful for my Church family here in the United Kingdom. Distance has made me appreciate more my own family back in Greece. I feel honored to have been invited to experience the unique and perfect love that unites God's family. Most of all I am grateful to know that we can look beyond the differences and anything that might temporarily vex us and see the love that unites us! VT