Love and Like-Mindedness

I was just going to say that! 

If you have a great marriage, if you have a bestie or a sibling who is like a bestie, if you've found someone --or a group of "someones" --with whom you just click, chances are you've said these words on more than one occasion. Like-mindedness. It's great when it just seems to appear naturally, but is it possible to develop "same brain" among people so diverse?

In Philippians 2:1-4, Paul urges the Christians in Philippi to be likeminded with one another:

Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. 

Pretty amazing, given there were more than two or three people in the church in a city known for welcoming travelers and immigrants. Imagine! It's hard for a family of four to agree on takeout much less dozens, hundreds, or thousands of people from varied backgrounds and nationalities coming together to plan an outreach event. But Paul goes on to explain how this is possible:

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. (v. 5-8)

Have the mind of Christ. All of you. In sharing the same dreams, for the same purpose, in the same way --humbly --we develop like-mindedness among our brothers and sister in Christ. When we look at folks who have been members of the same church for dozens of years or couples who joyfully celebrate anniversaries in the double-digits, we are seeing, in most cases, the product of this development. These people didn't just "fall into" a church where everyone thinks as they think; they didn't just "happen to marry" the person most like them. The development of sameness supersedes whatever evidence there is of differences.

Look at the friendship between David and Jonathan presented in the Old Testament. They were worlds apart in the specifics and circumstances of their lives. One was the discarded, youngest son of a farmer, sent daily into the fields to tend sheep and support his brothers who did "the real work." The other, the eldest son of the king of Israel, raised in a palace for the purpose of one day assuming the throne. (Because of the love and shared purpose between these two men, some have even gone so far as to trot them out as a homosexual couple. For certain, that is not the case. Their shared purpose in life --the shared purpose that drew them in such close friendship to one another --was bringing glory to God; they would not have done anything to bring Him dishonor or offend Him.) So different, but they were wholly devoted to the same, the only God. In 1 Samuel 14:6, Jonathan confidently asserts God is able to save by many or by few. In 1 Samuel 17:37, David confidently asserts God, who saved him from the lion and the bear is able to save him from a large man. It was this certainty in the God of Israel, that bound the two as brothers. Like-mindedness. And from that shared devotion, the two loved each other as they loved themselves.

Let me just backtrack for a moment to the misapplication of their love mentioned before. We are called to love our neighbor as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-39; Mark 12:30, 31). David and Jonathan did that. But what does that mean? People struggle with all sorts of self-esteem issues; the root of which may very well be self-centeredness. When one's love for oneself is so perverted, how can we love others? The world defines love as approving and affirming, always being nice to people we view as oppressed or marginalized. If we are loving others as we love ourselves, this definition makes clear the way we see ourselves: worthy of approval and affirmation, an underdog deserving of a fair shake. Is that true? Is that love? That's the real problem; loving rightly. It's not about loving oneself enough or in such a manner. To love is to love according to God's word, rightly; not just in feeling or passion. Love is so much more! If it doesn't emerge and mature from a common source, the perfect singular Source of whom love itself is part, it cannot be love. The world, typically, does not understand that love because without like-mindedness in Christ, everyone is chasing after what seems right to them; there is no common thought, no common worship, no common purpose. Perfect love, however, can be realized when like-mindedness is present. 

This is how David and Jonathan loved. This is how believers in Philippi loved. This is how we are to love. In like-mindedness, drawn to and by the same pure love of God who is love.

Midweek: Tracing Edition: Engaging the Scripture Word by Word (NKJV)

Are you familiar with "verse mapping"? According to The James Method website:

Verse mapping is a technique used to gain a deeper understanding of God's word. It is a method of breaking down a verse by identifying and defining keywords, historical context, alternate translations, and cross references.

Verse mapping usually begins with a great cup of tea and a verse from a word-for-word Bible translation. Using a journal, highlighters, a concordance or Bible dictionary, and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, one digs deeply into the verse, examining historical context, word meanings, other biblical references, and finally, personal application. Bible tracing is similar. Like verse mapping, Bible tracing engages left and right brain; analysis and logic meet creativity and intuition for full immersion into Scripture. 

Thomas Nelson Bibles has given me the opportunity to peruse their New King James Version of the New Testament in the Tracing Edition. The copy I received free of charge is bound in brown Leathersoft™ over board for a sturdy yet attractive cover. The front cover is stamped with a beautiful image of a shepherd and his sheep, and the back cover is marked with the words of Matthew 24:35. The spine is exposed with a Smyth-sewn binding that allows the book to lie flat when open. It arrives in a sturdy box, is complete with a presentation page --perfect for gift-giving, and it carries Thomas Nelson's lifetime guarantee. Included in the front matter are ten topical Bible study suggestions; subjects like anxiety, comfort, the Holy Spirit, community, and others. At almost two full inches of thickness and containing only the New Testament, this is a sizeable text --there are no additional study aids, maps, or articles; reason being, the font is much larger (17 point) than most Bible editions in order to facilitate tracing. The print is single-column, lending to a more casual, comfortable style, and is in a lighter grey, rather than black, print. The paper is of a heavier weight to support highlighting, and the margins are wide for notetaking.

Personally, I've never done verse-mapping or tracing, but I can see the benefit of tracing repeated themes throughout a chapter or book, tying the whole of it together and collating specific truths. And there is a clear link between handwriting and cognitive function. Is there a better way to keep your mind sharp and your heart pure? This edition from Thomas Nelson would be an excellent start to your journey in tracing the Scriptures or help someone you know as they seek to grow in the Lord. An edition like mine is currently available on Amazon for $30.98 or at christianbook.com for $30.88. A grey cloth over board edition is available as well.    

Parenting Me

I stare at the tiny screen, noticing her facial expressions --my expressions. I look at her eyes --my eyes, my mother's eyes looking back at me from across the world. These video calls with my daughter are, at times, like looking into a mirror. Even the things that stress her or the words she uses to my grandchildren. Revealing much of who I was at that stage of life.

I turn toward our youngest here at home, not across the world but beside me. I do not see my eyes in his. He does not share my facial expressions --yet. But still he reveals. Our interactions often show me just who I am. Rigid. Annoyed. Arrogant. Fixed on controlling everything around me. Ugly. As he looks to meet my gaze, I turn away. As he seeks to make a connection with this far-too-busy person, I keep my answers short. 

But by the grace of God, I often hear the voice. He belongs to me.

And I soften. 

I have been called to this. I have not been called to laundry or paying bills or even to writing and teaching --at least, not first. I have been called to be his mother, their mother, wife of my husband, friend to my neighbors. Relationship. A daughter of the King; not just a proselyte or devotee. We --all of those who would come, are not merely saved to go our own way in obedient servitude, blindly following instructions. We are brought into relationship with the God who created us, the Judge who served our sentence, the King who sits on the throne of heaven. I am living the life of a daughter by the hesed of my Heavenly Father; not because I am not flawed and sinful, selfish and misguided. I am running this race, yearning to obey because He is worthy; not because I am trying to earn His favor, to meet His gaze or make a connection. The connection has been made. My gaze has been met. Though I am flawed and sinful, selfish and misguided, I have His favor through the Son. 

For all of my impatience revealed to me in shortened bedtime prayers and unwillingness to give yet another hug when tucking in... For all of my anger revealed to me when I've said, Stop teasing the dog, for the fourth time that morning... For all of my pride revealed when I use the I-told-you-so tone... For the death grip I have on clean floors and tidy circumstances revealed when milk is literally spilled... For all these things, there is grace. My Father loves me more than my getting it right. My parenting, as wobbly and broken as it is, does not sway His love for me. And I am drawn ever closer to Him.

The lesson is not just how failed I am; it is not only what is revealed in me as I parent our children, or be a wife to my husband, or be a friend to my neighbor. The takeaway is how good our Father is! His love for His children is as transformative as it is boundless. He forgives and lavishes grace, yes; but His Spirit works to then reveal His character in us. Like spiritual DNA passed from Parent to child, as we experience more of Him we become like Him. And as I become more like Him, I can want for my children to become more like me. I can, with confidence say to them, "Imitate me as I imitate Christ" (1 Corinthians 11:1). I can look at their selflessness and see my own. I can look at their humility and see my own. I can look at their beauty and see my own. Not achieved or earned by my own hand; but because my Father loves me and cares enough to parent me.