On Monday Mary and I will celebrate thirty years of marriage. God has stepped in and somehow given my wonderful wife the ability to bear with and tolerate me for three decades.
Seriously, one of the keys to a long and successful marriage is what is considered by many to be a “bad” word. It is a word used that I once heard a noted preacher say to cut out of our dictionary. This horrible word? Compromise.
When Mary and I were married all those years ago we chose a verse for the day and for our marriage. “That you may with one mind and one mouth glorify God.” We have often failed to do so. We have not been perfect, but through the years we have learned that compromise is a vital part of any relationship. Through the years we have learned to let the non-essentials go for the purpose of unity.
Paul has been addressing the issue of unity and the danger of non-essentials in the body of Christ. His stress is on unity, “May God grant you to be like-minded, according to Christ, that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify God.”
Glorifying God comes with unity, not division. Separation has its place. Sometimes it must be exercised. However, far too often that has become the norm instead of the exception.
What would happen to a marriage if we chose to divide over every little difference? What if we had to stick to every one of our preferences? How long would that marriage last? Praise God for allowing Mary and I thirty years of striving to glorify God with our home. May God give us, the church, the wisdom to lay aside our petty squabbles and be like minded according to Christ, with one mind and one mouth glorifying God with the time He has given us. .
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