Showers of Blessing - Restored Relationships
Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry (2 Timothy 4:11).
Father, You are the God of perfect unity—one God, three persons—Father, Son, Spirit in an eternal relationship of complete and unending love. You created us for relationship (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12) and You desire us to live in unity. The psalmist exclaimed, "How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!" (Psalm 133:1).
Yet too often, in family, in business, in society, in ministry, our relationships are derailed by strife, and anger, and sharp disagreements. The early church was not exempt—we see the apostle Paul pleading with two individuals in the Philippian church to be of the same mind in the Lord (Philippians 4:2).
But even Paul himself had had an earlier rift in a relationship that led to separation from his ministry partner Barnabas, and Barnabas' cousin John Mark: Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them...and had not continued with them in the work. They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company (Acts 15:37-39).
But now that Paul was nearing the end of his life—the time of his departure (2 Timothy 4:6), he was asking Timothy to bring Mark. We are not given the reason for the change in Paul's perspective, but we are given the important shift to a view of Mark as helpful in his ministry (2 Timothy 4:11).
Father, sometimes we too, need a shift in perspective. Help us not to hold on to the hurts, the mistakes, and the opinions of the past—in ourselves or in others—even as we grow and change, as they grow and change and as times and circumstances change.
As we consider the brevity of life, lead us to reconsideration, forgiveness, and reconciliation. Teach us love, grace, gratitude, and a new appreciation for important relationships we have shut out in hasty anger or sharp disagreement. Heal the wounds and the bitterness of the past, so we do not lose the benefits of the present.
Thank You for the showers of blessing You provide through those who come alongside us in family, in friendship, in professional circles, and in ministry. Free us from stubborn pride and unforgiveness so we do not forfeit all You have planned through restoration and unity.
Comments