Chapter 10

When we become unified, we become stronger. God has given us many examples as to how we are to live our lives, and coming together with other Christians is very important. It can be difficult to engage ourselves with other cultures and belief systems, especially when we are working strictly as individuals. However, Christ has made it clear throughout scripture and His example here on Earth that we need to be working together as one body. By doing this, we are going to be able to reach more people and share God's word with others who are in need of it. Being unified in Christ is such a wonderful and important thing, and I am grateful that I get to be part of His body of believers. His calling for my life is one that I want to embrace and take very seriously. I hope that through engaging with other Christians, and putting myself out into the world, I will be able to find direction and guidance to achieve the things that I set out to do.

As I have spent time reading Disunity in Christ, I have found it to be very helpful. Cleveland has introduced many good and important topics throughout her book, and I am thankful that I could read about them and apply them to my life. I know that my life has been further shaped in a positive way because of her words displayed in this book, and she talked about a lot of tough issues. It is very beneficial for Christians to be thinking about these ideas and allowing them to become common aspects of life to think about. Cleveland has demonstrated the importance of focusing on changing the negative issues in society. As I have continued learning throughout my life, I recognize how much of a blessing it is to be able to join together with other Christians and work towards bringing God glory and praise. I will take the lessons that I have learned from this book and apply them to my future learning and experiences.

Chapters 8-9

I have found that my faith often becomes the thing on which I base the beliefs of others. If someone thinks differently from me, I can sometimes become suspicious or judgmental. As Cleveland points out in these chapters, this is a dangerous line of thought. As Christians, it is important that we are sharing the word of Christ while at the same time being a good example to everyone that we come in contact with. No one is going to want to listen to us if we are interacting with them using a judgmental attitude. My culture has a significant impact on me, whether I recognize it or not. Because of this, my faith is affected, and I can become shaped into something that society wants me to be. In order to avoid this, I will hold tightly to my faith, but in turn I may negatively act out towards others. Although this is not my intention, it can happen within multiple aspects of my life. Cleveland recognizes that this can often happen to believers and that we may respond in different ways. It is important that I am constantly evaluating my life and looking for things to improve upon, because I will always have aspects of my life that need to be shaped in a better way. 

Even though culture and relationships can blind us and cause us to live in negative ways, they can also open a door for positive interactions across societies. In order to do this, we need to become more open and transparent. This is not easy, but it is crucial for developing relationships that are rooted in Christ and what He wants for us. Everyone has stereotypes, but once we work on getting rid of those, we can successfully create a stronger community and unity in Christ. I know that I need to set larger goals for myself so that I can stay focused on what is really important. By doing this, I will be able to put all of my focus on God rather than he world. He is the One who is truly able to change me and make my heart more dedicated to Him. By having a strong and positive relationship with God, I can work with others in the best way possible. We are called to serve Him and other people, and that will help us grow in our faith. We can all work together to reach a better sense of unity, respect, and genuine love. 

Chapters 6-7

We have many ways of boosting our self-esteem, even though we may bring others down in the process. It is important that we are creating an identity for ourselves, but the result can often become a negative one when we are constantly focused on pleasing others through our identities. Oftentimes as Christians, we get so caught up in searching for the perfect identity that we forget to hold fast to the blessings and values of Christ. We focus on earthly possessions or people, and we tend to drift off course. This has become a huge problem in today's culture. Cleveland points out that over the last century, our moral standards have changed and have moved further away from traditional Christian and biblical standards. Because of this, we have developed a defensive stance toward people who pose any kind of threat to us. We are scared to go out into the world and take on the hardships that await us. This also means that we may be missing wonderful aspects of life, and that there are countless blessings that are passing us by because we are content with being in our own little boxes. In my own life, I can see this problem pretty clearly. I am often content with how my life is going, even though I am aware that there is a lot of room for improvement. My identity has primarily been shaped by Christ, but I often become caught up in the world and the ideas that it pushes on me.

Conflict becomes a problem all around the world, and I often don't know how to combat it. I want to stand my ground, but I also need to make sure that I am fighting for Christ, and not for my own gain. There are so many different aspects of culture, spreading multiple beliefs throughout the world. It is easy to get confused and to lose our foundational Christian thought. However, it is important that we continue to fight for our faith, and that we are focused on bringing glory to God. I am sometimes quick to surrender my identity, instead of standing strong for what I believe in. We are not called to surrender to the world, but to give everything that we are to Christ. He has redeemed us and He will continue to sustain us. When I focus on Him and the promises that He has made for all of us, it becomes a lot easier for me to deal with conflict in the world, while still maintaining my core identity.

Chapter 5

We tend to believe that it's important that we are able to find an identity for ourselves. However, this doesn't necessarily mean that our identity will be rooted in good or pure values. We may even lean more towards associating with others, rather than creating a personal identity for ourselves. Cleveland points out that we have a tendency to observe how other people interact with one another and rely on feedback from those around us to help shape our identity. I have experienced this in my own life, and I know that I am often guilty of letting other people create my identity for me. It can be easy to allow this to happen, and there are many reasons for this: we want to fit in with certain groups, we don't feel good enough about ourselves to begin with, or we simply don't know what we want out of this life. This also leads into Cleveland's points about self-esteem. Our interaction with others and how we view our identity can produce either good or bad self-esteem, which in turn can influence our identity. It is a cycle that is often tough to get control of. However, I have found that when I take time to focus on the Lord and learn from the wisdom that He offers me through the Bible, that process becomes a lot clearer and easier to handle.

The good news is that Christ has offered us a perfect identity to gain influence from. As Christians, it is crucial that we are interacting with the world in such a way so that we can be good examples to those around us, and to ultimately point them to Christ. Our identity is something that can be shaped throughout our lives, and we can build upon it as we learn and experience more. We also should focus on the fact that we belong to a collective identity: the body of Christ. This is very encouraging to me, especially during this time of my life. I know that I can surround myself with people who offer me words of wisdom and true guidance, and that I can look to the Bible as well. God has given us everything that we could ever want, and it is our job to use our identities and talents to lead others to Him. If someone looks at me and doesn't like how I am living my life, what does that say about God? To someone who has never experienced God before, it can be an immediate deal-breaker. It is so important that we are taking our actions into consideration as we live our lives everyday. We never know what impact we may be having on another person, and we may miss our one opportunity to share the gospel with them. Our identities and the way that we present ourselves can truly change someone's life. My primary job in this life is to be a servant of the Lord, everything else should fall into place behind that. By making an active effort every day to stop and think about what I am doing, I will be able to better recognize the impact that I am having on the world around me, and how I am living a life that is honoring to God.

Chapters 3-4

Our human interaction with the world may lead us to stereotype and adhere to behaviors that are based on prejudices. As Cleveland points out, we often do this without even thinking about what we are doing or how it is affecting those around us. I catch myself doing this at times as well. I will see a group walking across campus and I may immediately make assumptions about that group. These assumptions not only point to the group as a whole, but to the individual members as well. This is one major problem with stereotyping. It is important to recognize that every individual is different, and just because they are part of a collective group, it doesn't mean that they all hold the exact same ideas or values. Groups are often formed to embrace similarities, but also to utilize differences. Cleveland also points out that this is a big issue within the Christian community. The body of Christ is a collective group of different believers, all with their own stories. It is crucial that we recognize that the body of Christ is all-inclusive, and that we can all be active members in it. Our stereotypes can often lead to bigger problems and unforeseen consequences.

These problems can lead us to thinking of ourselves as superior to other groups, placing ourselves on top of the spectrum. It is beneficial to recognize and define differences between individuals, but we should strive to shape them in a positive light. God has called each and every one of us to serve Him and fight for His name. We should be focused on working together and using the gifts that we have been given to influence those around us. Our stereotypes and prejudices about others can create a huge barrier that is very difficult to overcome. It is our job as Christians to eliminate these negative ideas and to embrace God and the work that He is doing. By doing this, we can fully interact in the world and learn to live a life that is centered on Christ rather than ourselves.

Chapters 1-2

Throughout my life, I have noticed and understood certain labels and how they are associated with Christians specifically. I have always wondered why there are so many different ways to live a Christian life. Through our worship, prayers, and beliefs, it seems as though everyone has something different to offer when it comes to the body of Christ. However, I have come to appreciate these differences and realize that God works in multiple ways, not just through one strict outline of how a life should be lived. As I read Cleveland's words, I could see all of these things more and more and I became very interested in the fact that Christians can be unified through our differences. Cleveland made it clear that we have specific groups that we associate with, and we often judge other groups because of their actions or beliefs. Unfortunately, this happens far too often between Christians. Our job is not to judge others or tell someone that they are worshipping God incorrectly. I think that oftentimes we create our own labels, we simply allow others to associate those labels with us. If we weren't so quick to judge others, maybe we could take a better look at ourselves and think about the things that we are doing. God has given us a task to accomplish, and our time on earth is very limited. We should be fully devoted to furthering His kingdom and sharing His word, rather than judging our brothers and sisters or thinking of ourselves as superior. In reality, God will always be the one in control. He doesn't need us at all, and yet He chooses to use us. That fact alone should be enough to convince us never to think of ourselves as superior to anyone else.

I am far from perfect, I am the first to admit that. I find my hope and peace in the fact that God has redeemed me and that I am a working member of the body of Christ. Because of His love and grace, we don't have to live this life alone. We have a real hope, and we are working towards the day when we will finally arrive in Heaven. This is a huge blessing to me, and I am always blown away by that fact when I think about it. Our time on earth is temporary, but the work that we do here is not. We should spend our time encouraging both Christians and non-Christians, and using our stories and experiences to create a bigger impact. By working together to further glorify God's name, He will be honored, which should be our ultimate goal.

I greatly appreciate the words of Cleveland, and the issues that she addresses and wrestles with. It is important that we talk about these issues and figure out ways to resolve them and allow ourselves to become better representations of Christ. Unification in Christ is a wonderful thing, and something that I am very grateful to be a part of.