Moses couldn’t do it
alone. He tried, but it was wearing him
out. God arranged some help – adding the
assistance of 70 elders who were given a share in the spirit God had poured out
on Moses. When the younger generation
expressed surprise at this, Moses prayed: “Would that all the people of the Lord
were prophets! Would that the Lord
might bestow his spirit on them all!” The rest
of salvation history tells the story of how God answered this prayer.
We are living in a time
when it is clear that no one of us has all the gifts and talents needed to
address the challenges we face. But all
of us together, in interdependence, have what it takes, if only we are united
in the Spirit. The world continues to
separate us from one another and from our better selves. We make judgments and fail to allow proper
time for understanding and discernment.
Like Moses, we tend to be overworked and stressed out.
Unity is what will free
us to overcome all that stands in our way.
“We must indeed all hang together, or, most assuredly, we shall hang
separately” was Benjamin Franklins wry quip in the face of argument for the
American Revolution. In order for the
“great experiment” to succeed, we need once again to be reminded that we are “E pluribus unum,” that is “one from
many.”
Jesus’ mind and heart
belong to us. When we open our spirits
to His way of discernment, we find ever new paths toward unity and peace. The solutions to all the problems we face
will not come from our own devices. We
need what only the Spirit of God can offer.
Whether we are in church or out in the world, we need God and one
another. May our hearts be open as the
Spirit of Christ is poured out upon us so we may be the prophetic witnesses we
are called to be.
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