FROM THE VAULT: Unity

Written by Gracie Kinsey

If you’ve followed along with the CBM Internship Program for any amount of time, you’ve probably heard one of us mention the “Core Values” of the Internship. If you’re not one of our interns and can’t recite them by heart, I will list the five core values here for you: Humility, Servant Leadership, Flexibility, Excellence and Unity. Today, we’re going to primarily focus on Unity. 

The definition of Unity is “an attitude of love, patience and forgiveness towards others.” Ephesians 4:3 says, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” Unity is what keeps a team together, yes? And, by definition, unity maintains love, patience and forgiveness between your team, your partner, your family, whomever it may be that you are closest with. We are told in 1 Corinthians 13 that true love “is patient” and “keeps no record of wrongs” (13:4-5). So really, true unity is choosing to practice Biblical love towards those who surround you. 

Now might be a time to ask yourself, “Who is closest to me in my life?” “Is there something I haven’t forgiven them for?” “How often do I lose my temper on them rather than seek to understand and be patient?” The reason I ask this is because of something Andy Stanley once wrote in his book titled Enemies of The Heart about “friendly fire.” He said, “The people closest to you routinely catch the flak thrown off by the explosive stuff you normally work so hard to keep hidden. What’s in your heart comes out at home, where you’ve turned off the “safety” and let down your defenses. That’s when the heart exposes itself in the most negative ways to the people you love most.” To summarize: “We hurt most who we love most.” 

Anger and frustration can very easily sneak into our relationships if we let our guard down! If  not dealt with, the anger and unforgiveness will spread, and it will spread into more areas of our lives than just family. As a team, striving for unity is essential, not only for everyone else on the team, but for the wellness of our hearts. Unity is a wonderful thing when worked hard for and maintained. 

This appeared on the back cover of Janice and Bill Richoux’s wedding bulletin, September 10, 1983 and is titled, “Wedding Song.” (Bill & Jan Richoux are missionaries at Camp Victory in Samson, AL). As a team of CBM missionaries, interns and camp staff, we could use this as a “CBM Team Song.”

Together to serve Him, our precious Lord,

     United by His great love.

Together to point souls to Christ our Lord until we meet Him above.

We will serve Him together with all we have,

     Our lives belong to Him

To love Him, to praise Him, to serve Him together.

     This is the prayer we bring.

In humble obedience we’ll serve thee, Lord,

     You bought us at Calvary.

And now ‘tis the least we can give Thee, Lord,

     These lives we give back to Thee.

We will serve Thee together with all we have,

     Our lives belong to Thee.

To love Thee, to praise Thee, to serve Thee together

     This is our prayer, Amen.

By Vern Stromberg

1 Corinthians 1:10, “I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.”

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