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GOD IS LOVE! GOD LOVES US! God has made arrangements for us to have a fulfilling life here on earth. To help us achieve that He prepared a beautiful place in which we can live. He sent men and women to tell mankind how to have that fulfilling life. He even became flesh in the form of His own Son to show us the way and provide us an example of a life, which is pleasing to Him. He then had some faithful beings write His instructions down in a form, which can be read by anyone. He has provided special people such as Pastors and teachers to help us in understanding those instructions. He instructed His people to come together in groups (generally called His church) for mutual encouragement and support. And then, He sent down a special force called His Holy Spirit to direct the writing and teaching and to literally move within us and show us, lead us, and empower us to live what we have learned. THERE IS NOTHING THAT GOD HAS NOT DONE!

Long ago before recorded time, one of God's created beings became rebellious and God had to force him out of His family. This being we know as Satan, the devil. Regrettably his whole existence is dedicated to keeping everything noted in the first paragraph from happening. Whereas God's desire is to bring us a wonderful and abundant life, Satan's desire is to kill, to steal and to destroy (JOHN 10:10). His whole plan of attack is designed to keep us from being the kind of people God wants us to be and getting all God wants us to have. Fortunately, God has given us a "weapon" which assures us a greater likelihood of victory. It is called the "power of agreement." Jesus said that when we agree (MATT. 18:19) our Father responds. It is sad that the church does not use that "weapon" consistently because we are missing some of God's best.

From a TV special called "Wild Discovery" comes this story. A huge and angry lion had cornered a pack of wildebeest. The deer-like and awkward wildebeest were stuck, plain and simple. They had no place to go. They had tried to escape. They had tried to out run the lion, but they had failed. The lion ... the powerful king of the jungle ... had out-hunted and out-maneuvered the wildebeest. 
He had them exactly where he wanted them. That evening he could have had his pick of any of the animals for his dinner. And the wildebeest knew it. At least one of them was going to be dead in a matter of minutes. But that is not what happened.

When the lion had the exhausted wildebeest backed up as far as they could go, he stopped. He just sat there for a few moments, surveying the crowd; no doubt deciding which animal would die that night. So cocky was he! So confident, so assured! For a few tense moments, the lion stared at the wildebeest. And the wildebeest stared back. But then, suddenly, an amazing thing happened.

As if on cue from some off-camera source, all of the wildebeest turned, in unison, and squarely faced the lion. And then they began to approach him, every single one without hesitation. They all turned and as if perfectly choreographed and rehearsed, they began to walk toward the dastardly lion. Walking slowly at first and then hastening their speed as their momentum gathered and they realized the "odds" were beginning to change.

To make a long story short, the lion, seeing that he was facing a body unified, turned and ran. It was an amazing, goose-bumpily sight. The incredibly powerful lion, which had nothing to fear from a single wildebeest ... and not much when even facing a herd, turned and ran.

The moral of the story: The awesomeness of unity; the strength that comes in numbers; the power that can be harnessed when everyone is working toward the same objectives.

Individually we all have power and authority over the works of the devil. But, together, we have so much more. We read in the O.T. that if one man can chase a thousand, two can put ten thousand to flight (Deut. 32:30). This power becomes reality when we are all standing on the Rock of ages, Jesus Christ. 

A lumberjack who had worked in the redwood forest of California was interviewed concerning his experience. He said that the redwood trees have shallow roots. "How could they be so strong and have shallow roots?" the question was asked. He said, "Those trees are connected to each other by their roots. The roots of one tree reach out to the other trees, and they form a network of strength."

The church is a part of God's family. We need to uphold one another at all times but especially in times of stress. Sometimes the winds of trouble blow hard enough that we could topple. Alone we might. But, if we draw on the support of our brothers and sisters in Christ, we will have enough strength to stand. 

It is to our own advantage that we honor the admonition to "assemble ourselves together" (Heb.10:24-25). We need one another, to spur on others to "love and good works," to encourage one another, and to lend our enthusiasm to that of others. To have a fire, you need more than one coal. You also need a spark and a draft of air. One involved individual, set on fire by Christ, can be the spark. The Holy Spirit, the breath of God, may then blow on that spark and set a congregation ablaze. And now ... we have power! Now we have agreement! Now we have the power of agreement!