“Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.” (NLT)

Do you ever feel like you are on this walk of faith alone? I know that I have found myself there a few times during my time as a Christian. It is a hard path and brings a lot of bumps and bruises. The funny thing is that you don’t have to “go it alone.” Becoming a Christian means becoming part of a family. The Christian family is not a natural family but a supernatural one. When we ask Jesus to be our Lord and Savior, we see that the same is true for other Christians. The apostle Paul teaches Christians that they are to love brothers and sisters in the faith as though they were brothers and sisters in blood. 

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Do you have siblings? I have a brother and a sister, and we have not always seen eye-to-eye, but I would drop everything and come running if my siblings needed me. Even as a kid, I would pick on my little sister, but woe to the person who tried to bully her. They had to deal with me.  

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So, let’s carry this same view into our Christian walk… How do we live a life of mission toward each other?

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I want to look at the verses above one more time, but through the lens of Eugene Peterson’s “The Message” paraphrase. It says, “Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle. Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant."  

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Four concepts come to me out of these verses, like ingredients in our recipe:

1. Love should be sincere and come from the heart, not just be faked. (Love genuinely)

2. Actively avoid evil and cling to what is good. (Flee from evil, focus on what is good)

3. Be devoted to one another with a love that prioritizes others. (Build deep friendships)

4. Maintain enthusiasm and zeal in serving God. (Stay on fire for God)

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So how do we do this?

For me, I can do some of these better than others. Number 3 is a struggle because I am a bit of a hermit. That means that I need to be focused on this one. Some of the ways I do it are through intentionally connecting with others in ministry. I have joined a serve team, First Impressions and the Worship Team, but I have also gotten involved in Forged Men. This last one, in particular, has caused me to get to know a few men at a deeper level.  We are learning how to be a family together.

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With that, I need to make sure I don’t lose focus on the other three points the verse emphasizes. You need to know love to be able to really show love. I get to experience that by time spent with my Heavenly Father through prayer, including participating in the Wednesday night prayer gathering at the church at 5:30. I also spend time reading the Bible so I get to see how God showed his love for his people in the past. These actions also emphasize points #2 and #4 by keeping my eyes on him and not on the noise of the world around me.

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Have I figured it all out? Not even close! That’s why they call this a walk of faith. When I first learned to play the guitar, I struggled with the strumming patterns and fingering the chords. I focused on it, practiced a ton, and now, almost 40 years later, I am still learning new things and growing my guitar skill set. May we be lifetime learners of how to best navigate our Christian walk. May we also come alongside those who are newer on the walk than we are, helping them benefit from what we have learned.  

Dear God, Thank you for putting me on this walk of faith with you. I also thank you that you have given me a roadmap and great guides to help me on the way. Mostly, I thank you that this is not a “solo voyage,” but that you have made me an adopted member of a huge family. I am never on my own. Let me never forget that. In Jesus’ name, amen.