2 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.
Philippians 2:2 (ESV)
BEING OF ONE MIND
“Help!!”
The distinctive shriek of a twelve-year-old stopped me mid-sentence with my wife. I ran to the kitchen as my son desperately tried to open the glass door, but the doorknob wouldn’t turn. When I finally got it open, two fists came in — dripping with blood. My mind raced.
“I tried to open a coconut with a knife.”
I knew he needed stitches — and the only hospital was three hours away, on the opposite end of the island.
Eventually, he was bandaged up, and we were making the long drive home. My mind went back to those people in suits from yesterday. I had only packed T-shirts — not even a collared shirt — and one of our desires was to attend a church during our summer in Eleuthera. That was when I saw the bluest, prettiest water I had ever seen, and I pulled over.
We stood at the top of a cliff, marveling at the ocean, when I saw a man in a wide-brimmed fishing hat standing above a pool of water. I asked if he had caught anything, to which he raised a hand indicating “five.” My son and I scrambled down the rocks to the pool with five fish.
I began to talk to him — mostly about bait and fish species. And then I felt an uncomfortable question I knew I had to ask.
“Maybe you can help me. My family and I are here for the summer and wanted to attend a church. We forgot to pack nice clothes. Do you know somewhere we could go dressed like this?”
He looked at me curiously, as if I had said something strange.
“Yes, I know a place. Liberty Baptist Church.”
“Liberty Baptist Church? And I can go there dressed just like this?”
“Yes… in fact, I’ll invite you as my personal guest.”
“Wow. That would be fantastic. Thank you.”
He grinned and shook my hand. “My pleasure. By the way, I’m the pastor.”
You can show up to NorthStar wearing just about anything — I’ve even worn a UGA shirt and felt welcomed! But we could just as easily be wearing suits, and I think we’d get along much the same. What God seems to care about in His church isn’t necessarily what we wear but how we think and act. There isn’t one standard in Kennesaw and another when you’re away. It’s about “being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” On the same page, with the same love.
I am rarely an outsider when it comes to church. NorthStar has been home for me since 2008. But if I were back seeking — back as an unbeliever — the way I was treated on that rocky cliff would have gone a long way toward me choosing to enter any church’s doors. May we never forget what it feels like to be lost, so that others may one day never have to be.
Curt Bowen is a husband, father, and group leader who loves engaging in apologetics, theology, and good BBQ. A thrill-seeker at heart, he enjoys roller coasters and has an appreciation for snakes—just not the conversational type.
