I recently ran across another quote from Helen Keller. “Alone we can do so little. Together we can do so much.” For someone who was born blind and deaf, she had great insight. Christians each have a personal relationship with God and we each have a special mission for Him, but the Christian life is not meant to be a solitary journey. We have brothers and sisters in God’s family with whom to share life and we are all given the command to love each other and be a light for those who are still in the darkness. (John 15:17 and Matthew 5:14)
Living as a child of God is not a competition. We each have our own field to plow, plant, water and harvest. We each have our own lane in which to run the race. We each have been given our very own mission to complete. No calling or mission from God is more important or less important than someone else’s. God looks at the entire mosaic picture of His children at work for Him and it is beautiful in His sight. There is no sibling rivalry in our relationships with brothers and sisters in Christ. Instead, there is a strong mutual bond of love that spurs us to empathize with each other and encourage each other. The wonderful people God has placed in my life are beyond value – they are truly priceless. Sometimes, a quick call to check on each other turns into 90 minutes or more of uplifting conversation; as we share experiences, blessings, needs and more than a few laughs together.
Our experience with the people in the world around us isn’t always so uplifting or encouraging, but it is just as important. Jesus says, “But while I am here in the world, I am the light of the world.” (John 9:5) In Matthew 5:14, Jesus says that we are the light of the world like a city on a hill that cannot be hidden. Is Jesus contradicting Himself? Of course not! Paul explains in his letter to the church in Rome that the same Spirit that is in Jesus lives in us. (Romans 8:11) So our light is God’s light shining through us to the world around us. Those who are seeking God will be drawn to the light and we can share our testimony with them. Those who have become comfortable in sin will either flee from the light (and from us) or attack the light (and us) trying unsuccessfully to extinguish it. Their attacks must never be taken personally because it is really Jesus they are attacking, not us. We are told to love our neighbors – all of them; whatever reaction they might have to the light within us.
When you feel you are doing so little on your own, remember that you are a member of the mighty family of God. Together, with the help of our heavenly Father, we are doing so much more than we can imagine.