As a
kid growing up, I hated having neighbours. I vowed to live all by myself when I grew older. It wasn’t that I didn’t like
people, but my neighbours were often nosey.
They were incredibly good most
times, but as is usual with human relationships, they often stepped on my toes.
Instead of seeing the good in them and how they looked out for me, I chose to
focus on the few times they exasperated me, and wanted to become a recluse.
A
story in the Bible demonstrates the dangers that occur when we choose to live
all alone, not needing anyone or being needed by anyone. It is a very tragic
story of a town called Laish in the book of Judges 18:7-10, 27-29. You see that
town was secure and at peace, they were nice people who treated strangers
kindly. But they were far from neighbouring towns, and this was their downfall.
When
five spies from the tribe of Dan realised the vulnerability of the town, they
marched up against it with their warriors, killed the people and occupied the
place. We read in verses 27 and 28 that, “27 Then
they…went on to
Laish, against a people at peace and secure. They attacked them with the sword
and burned down their city. 28 There
was no one to rescue them because they lived a long way from Sidon and had no
relationship with anyone else.”
God
values relationships, in fact the very essence of Christianity is relationship
with God, ourselves and others. God doesn’t want us all by ourselves, He wants
us to be a blessing to others and for us to be blessed by others. We read in
Proverbs 27:17 that, “As iron sharpens iron,
so one person sharpens another.” And again in Hebrews 10:24,25 it is reiterated, “and let us consider how to stimulate one
another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own
assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another;
and all the more as you see the day drawing near”
Dear friends, we are living in terrible
times of great deception. Our adversary the devil is desperate to destroy as
many as possible. One of his strategies is to attack weak and isolated people,
just like a lion attacks the weak animals or those who are isolated from a herd.
You will
rarely see lions confront the whole herd, because it knows they will pull together and save the one being attacked . The
Bible says it nicely in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a
roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
I
know that forming relationships can expose us to hurts and disappointments even
among Christians, but it helps to remember that no one is perfect and to be
forgiving. Look out for the welfare of others and accept correction or
criticism from others as a show of love and support. Pray regularly for others,
be patient with their mistakes, knowing that you too have your weaknesses.
Remember that you cannot claim to love God, who you cannot see, if you don’t
love your brothers and sisters whom you see. To know the attributes of love,
you might want to read 1 Corinthians 13.
Also
study the Bible regularly as a source of knowledge and revelation of God’s mind
towards you, listen to sermons online from other sources other than your
church. Let God be your constant companion, pray as often as possible, be
thirsty and hungry for God.
All in all, develop your relationship with God
and others, so that you can resist the attacks that are bound to come. Whether we
like it or not, we are in a battlefield, a spiritual one. Depression, panic attacks, fears, persistent sin, indulging our weaknesses, etc are some of the ways we can succumb to the attacks of the enemy and be destroyed.
The devil is is our persistent enemy
and will never stop his attacks, but we can overcome him if we will develop our
relationships with God and with other like-minded Christians. Don’t make the
mistake of Laish, do not stay isolated.
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Image1 courtesy:http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/12/13/article-2523084-1A13F1DF00000578-807_964x623.jpg
Image2 courtesy:https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7184/6973641593_4ebc586a6d_z.jpg
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