Three Steps Forward?

You’ve heard the familiar phrase, “Three steps forward and two steps back.” What does that mean? In what situations might you feel like that is happening? It might be frustrating, but you might conclude, “Hey, at least I’m making progress!”

Maybe this illustration will help. Suppose you are trying to build a tower out of wooden toy blocks (Jenga blocks, if you have them!). While you are building forward and upward, someone else is removing blocks from down below. Not blocks that are absolutely critical which would make the tower fall down, but it might cause the tower to teeter a bit!

In most situations in life that involve people interactions, it’s not unusual to feel like someone is trying to remove blocks when you are trying to add blocks! You have something you want to accomplish but there are things working against you. This is even true in church interactions and groups. This is because churches are a collection of people who, even though they know they are saved by God’s grace, continue to struggle, mess up, sin, and sometimes lose their tempers with others.

In Ephesians 4, Paul addresses this struggle when he says, “I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called – one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all (verses 1-6).”

That is easier said than done, isn’t it?! We move forward with great intentions and then sometimes lose ground when we say or do something that we later regret. The Bible uses the illustration of Christians as being one body. How does that impact things? We normally do not intentionally harm our bodies. Or how about thinking of the church as a family? We may disagree, argue, lose our tempers, or worse with family members but we love them and feel connected to them. That is the beauty of being family as the body of Christ: we are connected to one another. Some people might say their faith is personal, private, and one-to-one between God and them, and they don’t need a church. But look what they are missing! We are part of something much bigger, namely the body of believers past, present, and yet to come!

When you feel like someone at church or in other places in life is trying to remove blocks from your tower, go ahead and tell them to stop, but keeping stacking on top!
“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms (1 Peter 4:8-10).”

4832 Ponderings:

• Who are the people in your life trying to remove blocks from your tower? How can you respond to them?
• Are you removing blocks from someone else’s tower? Would this be a good time to stop removing and start helping to build?