In John 17:21, Jesus said, "I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me."

Before his crucifixion, this is what Jesus prayed for; this is what he deemed absolutely essential to the spread of the gospel, and what he asked for according to the will of the God the Father: unity within all believers.

Do you think that the body of Christ currently exudes such incredible oneness that there is no doubt the Almighty dwells among us? Friends, I think we have some work to do.

In elementary school I remember a line on our report card for “Works well with others”. Do you remember that? Hopefully most of us got an S or S+ on that line. What kind of grade would you get today if you were being graded on “Works well with others”? I believe most of us would disappoint our teacher with our score. That’s what collaboration is really – right? Working well with others?

In your job what does it really look like to collaborate, and does it really matter? Does it matter for the Kingdom? Is Collaboration related to cooperation? Did Jesus call for us to collaborate, cooperate, or just fulfill the great commission? Am I ever going to stop asking questions and bring some answers?

There are a few things that I consistently do in life. I organize, share what other people are doing, enjoy a good deal, and pay attention to what God is up to in others' lives.

God has been churning these together recently, and like a good recipe, when you add the right ingredients together, you get tasty results. Read to the end to see the recipe that God's been creating.

Soon we will get back to our work space, and socializing. We are ready to renew friendships face to face with coworkers and employees and friends at church. It’s time to live but let’s remember to celebrate the valuable lessons we have learned in the last 10 weeks.

The assumption is that retirees are comfortable financially and mentally, have their health, have many friends and EVERYBODY is doing it.  Just because everyone is doing it, doesn’t make it right.