“May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (NIV)

“In Alaska as it is in heaven.”

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This is the vision of ACF Church. I hear it often mentioned in ACF sermons, prayers, and worship. Each time, it reminds me of a vision I received of what heaven would look like in Eagle River, Alaska. To be brief, the vision was of 30,000 believers gathered in a large group where ACF stands now.

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Only ACF wasn't there. Nothing made by man was. This community of believers was gathered in a place where only God's perfect creation existed. We were in the Garden of Eden, Alaska style. Everything was perfect: the grass, the spruce trees, the fireweed, the sky, the air…everything. It was so perfect; death did not exist in any form, not even a broken blade of grass or a brown pine needle.

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But even while experiencing this Eden, there was something much better. I was among this great crowd of believers. We knew each other fully. Perfect love flowed outward from each person like pure white light. It was like the best dinner party in history. Every time you turned around, there was someone you were absolutely thrilled to see. It felt so wonderful to be in community; it was life giving. We thrived on each other. We were all unified in one mind with which we worshiped Jesus.

There's a saying, “There's no community without unity.” While this is true when it comes to spelling community, it's also true in God's Kingdom. According to Google, the Bible has a lot to say about community. A quick search returned dozens of verses addressing community, today's verse being one. Solomon, in his wisdom saw the benefit of community in Eccl. 4:10, writing that two are better than one. He even defines non-community as meaningless (Eccl. 4:7-8). Clearly, we are called to live in community, and that means living in unity.

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How best to achieve that can be a challenge though. If you're like me, you need to practice something to get better at it, and having a role model to strive for helps guide that practice. The best role model I can think of is our Triune God. Discussing the interrelations of this “Trinity” would take countless devos, so what follows is a brief review.

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Our Triune God consists of three entities: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, AKA the Trinity. The Father is not the Son, who is not the Holy Spirit, who is not the Father, but they are all the one true God. They all serve different roles in enacting God's unified plan for our salvation. A very basic description of these roles could be: the Father authored the plan, the Son carried out the plan, and the Holy Spirit maintains the plan. Yet all three are unified within the plan. It's hard to fathom how three separate entities can all be different, yet all be the same. But then, isn't that the ultimate example of unity?

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So, with the Trinity as our example, let's practice unity to achieve community.

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Like our Father, you can practice authoring your life to best be ready to achieve God's plan. Worshiping, Bible study, and being obedient are just a few examples. Like the Son, you can practice living your life to best carry out the plan. Serving others, sharing the Good News, and witnessing are some examples. And like the Holy Spirit, you can practice employing your life to maintain the plan. Encouraging, loving, and praying with others are good examples.

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There are many ways to practice unity. This is just one. I encourage you to find a method that works best for you. The important point is to practice. The more we practice unity, the more we'll experience life “in Alaska as it is in heaven.”

Most holy and high God, I thank you for your perfect plan of salvation. Your ways are wondrous and righteous. I revel in your perfect example of unity through the Trinity. Like the Trinity, you created us to be all separate yet all one. I invite you, Lord, to teach me as I practice unity in pursuit of your perfect community. What a blessing you give us by giving us each other. May your Kingdom come, to Alaska as in heaven. For Him, who exemplified unity, for me, Amen.