How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!
A dozen teams, each including three people standing shoulder to shoulder, prepared for the four-legged race. Each outside person was bound to the person in the middle by colorful rags at their ankles and knees, and every trio locked their eyes on the finish line. When the whistle blew, the teams lunged forward. Most of them fell and struggled to regain their footing. A few groups chose to hop instead of walk. Some gave up. But one team delayed their start, confirmed their plan, and communicated as they moved forward. They stumbled along the way but pressed on and soon passed all the teams. Their willingness to cooperate, step by step, enabled them to cross the finish line together.
Living for God within the community of believers in Jesus often feels as frustrating as trying to move forward during a four-legged race. We often stumble when interacting with people who hold different opinions from us.
Peter speaks of prayer, hospitality, and using our gifts to align ourselves in unity for life ahead. He urges believers in Jesus to “love each other deeply” (1 Peter 4:8), to be hospitable without complaining, and to “serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms” (v. 10). When we ask God to help us communicate and cooperate, we can lead the race in showing the world how to celebrate differences and live together in unity.
By: Xochitl Dixon
Xochitl Dixon
Xochitl (So-Cheel) Dixon has a heart for intercessory prayer, being rooted in Scripture, and growing with God’s people. As a first-generation Mexican American wife of a Black man, mother, stepmother, and grandmother to biracial and multicultural children, Xochitl celebrates our differences and sameness as God’s purposefully connected image-bearers. She's an advocate for inclusion and equality based on the strong biblical teaching of God’s intentional diversity. Though she suffers from chronic pain, fatigue, and limited mobility due to an upper thoracic back injury in 1992, Xochitl comes alongside readers around the world with vulnerability and transparency, sharing the truths of Scripture in life-applicable and relevant ways.
Crossing generational and cultural boundaries, she reaches international readers through her contributions to Our Daily Bread, Guideposts’ All God’s Creatures, social media platforms, and her books. Waiting for God: Trusting Daily in God’s Plan and Pace won second place in the 2020 Selah Awards. Her first children’s picture book, _Different Like Me _is a 2021 ECPA Christian Book Award Finalist and a 2021 Selah Award Finalist.
With more than nineteen years of experience ministering to children, teens, and women, Xochitl serves the Lord alongside her service dog, Callie. Sharing encouragement and prayers at www.xedixon.com and on social media, she spreads the gospel and inspires others to love God and others with Spirit-empowered courage, confidence, and joy.