And now, thanks to COVID-19, conflict and division are affecting nearly everybody and the reason is that all that’s going on now and during the past couple of years impacts how we can and can’t live our lives.
Masks, vaccines, business closures, border restrictions — all of it impacts us directly so we can’t help but have an opinion.
When we find someone who disagrees with us, it is hard to just agree to disagree because there is a real impact on our lives. For example, I could write that coffee is better than tea, and some would agree, and some would not. But my preference for coffee over tea does not stop you enjoying your cup of tea.
However, businesses requiring vaccine passports, churches closing or limiting attendances etc, does impact you.
So, we end up being divided by our differences. Divided by our differences of opinion, and this isn’t a new problem, it is just being highlighted more thanks to the current restrictions. This division occurs all the time and has done so all throughout history with consequences ranging from heated discussion to outright war.
There is a common thread that runs throughout though. In any setting, whether personal, work, religious, political etc, division comes through differences. Differences in opinion, in expectation, in understanding, even differences in what people consider normal.
The things is, perhaps instead of focusing on the things we disagree with, and instead of being divided by our differences, maybe we should be looking to be united in our similarities. Maybe we should be looking at the things we have in common. We are all experiencing the effects of a pandemic, that is common ground.
Paul of the Bible asks a simple question. Was Christ divided? The answer is hopefully an obvious no.
The similarity that we can all be unified behind is that Jesus Christ was crucified for us. We get to be unified in the knowledge that we were created by a creator who loves us, who has plans for us, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.
We have a choice to make. We can choose to be divided with each other. We can choose to argue and fight over masks and vaccines and all the other things that come with COVID-19. Or we can choose to look to something more and focus on staying unified, on caring for and supporting each other.
COVID-19 has changed the landscape of what society looks like, it has made gathering with friends and families significantly harder. Yet, this is something that we are all going through, so let’s focus on unifying our communities in the ways that we can, instead of pursuing arguments that ultimately lead to more separation and hurt.
— Chris Stevenson, Epicentre Church
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