Teams

"Two are better than one,
   because they have a good return for their labor:
If either of them falls down,
   one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
   and has no one to help them up."
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

I rejoined my men's group recently after a somewhat long hiatus. Some things in life are painfully obvious and yet that does not stop us from missing them. I have been wandering around the desert for months now, thirsty for a drink, determined to find it and give it to myself. Parched and weak I was floundering, and after spending time with my group I was suddenly renewed and refreshed. Is it any surprise that it was they who had to give me that drink, that sip of togetherness, that refreshment that is the Holy Spirit represented in the lives, tales and experiences of fellow believers stumbling through life?

For too many months now I have been spending my time on the wrong team. A one man team called "Me". Through knowledge and study, reflection, self-absorption and introspection I was intent on finding a God that coaches the other team; the team of "We".  In Me I will mostly find what Paul talks about in Romans 7:21-25

"So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! "

When I get out of myself, when I see the intricacies of life and faith through the eyes of others, I give God a chance to speak to me...to coach me...outside the confines of my own troubled mind.  How does he coach me? By reminding me that it isn't about me. By encouraging me to join the team of WE. Even Jesus needed friends. He had twelve of them as a matter of fact.  If I am less than a speck as compared to him, where do I find the gall to think I am good enough to go it alone?  On the team of We my bible study becomes the playbook, my brothers in the group my teammates, and our prayers the team fight song.

Many of you reading this blog don't go to church that often. Many of you don't belong to a small group, or spend time on a regular basis studying the Bible. I cannot possibly encourage you enough to do so. Please. Do it. Join the team of We and see God work his blessings in your life. Because if two are better than one, how much more so are four, or six, or eight? It's a we thing.