May 19, 2015 SHARE: Reading time: less than three minutes. John Wooden, the legendary basketball coach at UCLA, said it well: “It takes ten hands to make a basket.” We were not created for solo work. We work best in teams, as a body. We left off last week with Elijah in despair, crying out to the Lord, “I alone am left” to which the Lord replied, “No, Elijah. there are 7,000 others who have not bowed down to Baal” (1 Kings 19). We’re not alone. We have each other. And we’re at our best when the members of the body are working together in the unity that Jesus prayed for. What accomplishments in your life give you the most pride and satisfaction? No great deed is ever accomplished alone. My home congregation gutted and rehabbed an entire house for a young single mother this winter. Great effort. A team effort. That’s the power of WE. Many hands working with one purpose. Whether in our families of origin, our congregations or our synod, we’re at our best when we live and work in unity; one in faith, one in purpose, one in love and unity. The highest expression of this gift of WE is found in our marriages. How sad that the kind of unity that the Lord gave to Adam and Eve is such a frail and delicate union. I have been blessed with nearly 37 years of the most wonderful marriage to my dear wife Carol. The oneness that we share, the gift of a WE made of two ME’s who by their old sinful nature think of self first, is a precious gift of the gospel of Christ. But we’ve also had to work at it many times. When Carol was expecting our third, following an older sister and brother, our little six-year-old daughter wondered if the impending sibling would be a boy or a girl. Where would the power shift? “Just think,” she said. “If it’s a girl, it will be three against two, but if it’s a boy, it will be three against two.” Carol and I looked at each other, and thinking of the unity and oneness of our marriage, the WE that God had give us over the years, we said in the same moment, “No honey. Boy or girl, in this house it will always be two against three.” The unity of heart and mind and spirit that we have learned to share was too precious for us to be divided against each other in a boy vs. girl thing. I’m still amazed at how in that moment our thoughts went immediately to the same place. “In this house, mommy and daddy are one.” Jesus prays continually for our relational unity. And he prays that we the leaders in the church and synod would continually strive for that oneness. I think it begins at home. In our ministry with professional church workers, we know the stress this ministry lifestyle puts on marriage. I’m praying for those of you who are hurting, because the WE in your home is strained or broken. Our work of building the body of Christ as one in church and synod begins at home. Let’s all ask how we might give attention to our primary WE these days. God blesses our ministry when we find the WE at home first. Thanks for reading. Are you interested in helping bring a Grace Place Wellness Retreat to your region? We’d love to hear from you. Contact our President/CEO Randy Fauser today to begin exploring the possibilities. We’d love to bring our Classic Retreat to your area soon!