July 7th, 2026
Psalm 133:1, 3b — Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! . . . For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “It is grace, nothing but grace, that we are allowed to live in community with Christian brothers [and sisters].” And boy, do we abuse grace, don’t we! The psalmist writes of how good it is to live in unity with one another and calls this blessing and life forevermore, but I think we tend to call it nothing much. We take advantage of the fact that we have the opportunity to openly live our faith openly and with one another, and we tend to turn our faith into something private and secret.
Out of privacy and secrecy, we breed disunity and distrust. Of course, that doesn’t mean everyone ought to air their dirty laundry for everyone to see, but if we live in a culture where you fear airing any of your laundry out of fear that everyone will hear of all your laundry downwind of your clothesline, then there’s a problem!
We have the opportunity to be the body of Christ to one another, and we get the opportunity to do it in a culture where you don’t have to worry about being imprisoned or executed for doing so, yet many of us fail to live our faith in the day-to-day and view it as a Sunday morning vestment to worn like a Geneva robe on the pastor in the pulpit (for those of you who recall those days).
My desire for our church and for the Church is to grow in unity with Christ and with one another. The local church has the potential to feel like heaven on earth but often it can feel common and vulgar. What would it look like to grow in Christ-likeness? What would it look like to become a grow in grace with one another?
Community takes time to develop, and being the new pastor, it will take time to learn everyone’s stories and become a part of the community that is already here, but God willing, we can strengthen the existing foundation and grow upon it to become a multi-generational community of Christian brothers and sisters that will make waves in Baldwin County for the glory of God, because it is good and pleasant to dwell in unity together! We find life together!
United in Christ,
Rev. Joshua Fried
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “It is grace, nothing but grace, that we are allowed to live in community with Christian brothers [and sisters].” And boy, do we abuse grace, don’t we! The psalmist writes of how good it is to live in unity with one another and calls this blessing and life forevermore, but I think we tend to call it nothing much. We take advantage of the fact that we have the opportunity to openly live our faith openly and with one another, and we tend to turn our faith into something private and secret.
Out of privacy and secrecy, we breed disunity and distrust. Of course, that doesn’t mean everyone ought to air their dirty laundry for everyone to see, but if we live in a culture where you fear airing any of your laundry out of fear that everyone will hear of all your laundry downwind of your clothesline, then there’s a problem!
We have the opportunity to be the body of Christ to one another, and we get the opportunity to do it in a culture where you don’t have to worry about being imprisoned or executed for doing so, yet many of us fail to live our faith in the day-to-day and view it as a Sunday morning vestment to worn like a Geneva robe on the pastor in the pulpit (for those of you who recall those days).
My desire for our church and for the Church is to grow in unity with Christ and with one another. The local church has the potential to feel like heaven on earth but often it can feel common and vulgar. What would it look like to grow in Christ-likeness? What would it look like to become a grow in grace with one another?
Community takes time to develop, and being the new pastor, it will take time to learn everyone’s stories and become a part of the community that is already here, but God willing, we can strengthen the existing foundation and grow upon it to become a multi-generational community of Christian brothers and sisters that will make waves in Baldwin County for the glory of God, because it is good and pleasant to dwell in unity together! We find life together!
United in Christ,
Rev. Joshua Fried
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