Bible Reading: Romans 12:3-10
On their way to the park one Saturday morning, Maisie and her parents decided to stop at an estate sale. Maisie enjoyed seeing all the things the owners of the place were selling. When they walked into a room that looked like a library, Maisie gasped in delight. "Look! A harp! My music teacher at school has one. She said there aren't many people who know how to play them." Maisie turned to her dad. "Can we buy it? I'd love to learn how to play."
Dad pointed to a sign. "See that? It's not for sale."
Just then a woman who was supervising the sale walked in. She smiled at Maisie. "I see you like this harp," she said. "Did you notice the different kinds of strings? Some are really thin and others are thick and strong. Some are spiraled and some are grooved, but others are smooth."
"They're not all the same color either," said Maisie. "Some are bright red, and others are black or silver or gold."
"That's right," said the woman. "This harp belonged to my mother. Now I'm going to take it home so my daughter can learn to play."
The next day at church, Maisie looked around at all the different people singing in the sanctuary. "Being in church reminded me of the harp we saw yesterday," she told her parents after the service.
"Really?" asked Dad. "How's that?"
"Well, I noticed when we were singing how many different people there were--people of all ages and races and personalities--but they all worshiped God in harmony together, just like all the different strings on a harp play one beautiful song."
"That's a good way to look at it, Maisie," said Mom. "A harp is made up of many strings, and God's church is made up of many people."
Dad nodded. "And every string is different--each is designed to sound its own individual note. Yet when each string is in tune with the others, the harp makes beautiful, harmonious music! It's that way with God's church too. The members are all different, but the Holy Spirit unites us through our faith in Jesus. As we show His love to one another and serve and worship God together, we make music that's sweet to God's ears."
–Trudy Vander Veen
How About You?Do you enjoy the fact that each member of God's church is different? Not everyone will think or act just like you, but that's okay. The important thing is for all of us to stay in tune with the Holy Spirit. That means relying on Him to help us work together and get along, even when we disagree on things. Stay in harmony with other Christians by following the Master Musician--Jesus--as you show others His love.
Today's Key Verse:
How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity! (NIV) (Psalm 133:1)
Today's Key Thought:
Christians should live in harmony