“Unity —> Life Forevermore”

Love is not abstract. Love is more than something to analyze and study. Love is patient and kind and tender and giving. Love is compelling…. it makes sense. It’s more than “punching my holiness card each day …. oh yes, I love God and I love my neighbor; hey, I  completed my acts of love… I pray, I give alms, I fast….. I do my duty, leave me alone.” An abstract love sounds pretty sterile; it sounds like a world with no emotions…. a world where “R2D2 and 3CPO” are the model of sainthood.  No wonder God decided to take a chance on the human race versus creating a world of robots who would automatically obey and just do his bidding. 

I received a note from my 92 year old cousin the other day. He and his wife were unable to have children. He wrote, “we so much regret not having had children; big families have problems, but I would be glad to have those problems today.” He realizes that life brings many things with it, including problems…but it’s still worth it. Life is worth it; love is worth the cost.

Unity is a fundamental aspect of love .…. a fruit of love. Unity with God and with each other makes sense; it brings joy and happiness and fulfillment. Separation due to sin brings all the opposites …. sadness, isolation, unhappiness. The psalmist prays, “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down upon the beard, upon the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the LORD has commanded the blessing, life for evermore.” (Ps. 133:1-3) Where there is unity, there is the blessing of life …. for evermore.

When we dwell in unity we rejoice in each other’s joys and share each other’s  sorrows. Your joys and your sufferings are my joys and my sufferings. I love to speak about your goodness and your accomplishments and your honors, and I’m sorry for your difficulties and carry them in my heart. On the other hand, when we don’t dwell in unity, I can become envious of your gifts and accomplishments and success and feel the lesser because of your blessings….. “why not me….what about me….”. My spirit soars with joy when I’m in unity with others. 

Unity is so important. In heaven there will be prefect unity. There can be no disunity. God’s goodness and the goodness of the saints, and the goodness of the angels will cause my spirit to soar.  Your goodness will cause me to levitate. I will be so happy to see you happy. I will be so happy to see you being eternally honored and respected and joyful and beautiful and wonderful. There will be no more jealousy or envy or greed or sin …no more of anything that would cause me to not love and honor God and you with all my heart. Wow, heaven is going to be so great. 

Unity is worth fighting for …. it is worth the cost of loving. For there the Lord has commanded a blessing, life forevermore. And that is good news.