By John Ogden Sr

“Therefore, my beloved and longed-for brethren, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, beloved. I implore Euodia and I implore Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life” (Philippians 4:1-3, NKJV).

What the Holy Spirit will accomplish through us as we minister and work together in unity is amazing. The fourth chapter of Philippians is known as the chapter on peace. Paul starts this chapter by encouraging two people to not only be of the same mind but of the same mind in the Lord. This reminds me that as brothers and sisters working together, we must be of the same mindset, and that mindset must be the mindset of Christ. Satan’s tool to disrupt the work of Christ is to cause Christian brothers and sisters to not be in unity. Unity of the Spirit comes through humility and a life of preferring our brothers or sisters before us. What could we accomplish in any city if all of the churches could come together for the common cause of reaching the lost for Jesus?

I am excited about what God has done through CMA, but we could be even more effective if the unity of Christ were prevalent in every person and every chapter. This can only happen when we make this a matter of prayer for ourselves and those around us. What about with our families? We face many opportunities for division – relationships between husbands and wives who, for some reason, God chose to make us with different thought patterns, such as raising our kids, etc. Satan wants to bring division into every area of our lives. Unity starts with an inner reflection and allows the Holy Spirit to change us. In this walk of faith, we may never reach perfection, but there can be continual growth of the spiritual person and a determination to work and live in unity.