| devotional by: Matt Hammitt |
Added: 01-03-2008 |
Matt Hammitt: We Need Each Other
“I don’t know why it doesn’t come easy, but I know that we could be happy if we’d only learn to love.” – from “We Need Each Other” by Sanctus Real
If someone were to ask me about a typical day in the life of Sanctus Real, I would say that it’s not very typical. Each day is different, depending on whether we’re on the road touring, or whether we’re doing media interviews and visits, or whether we’re spending time at home with our families. It seems throughout the so-called ‘work day,’ there’s always an email, a phone call, or a text message that demands more time and energy than expected. Since we’re in a band, the day-to-day details might be different from what you experience in your profession – regardless of whether your’e in a band, work at a bank, are a school teacher, a policeman, a secretary or a stay-at-home mom, the same concept rings true for everyone with responsibilities: The noise of everyday life has a way of drowning out the things that really matter.
The demands on your time get the best of you after a while - they stretch you thin, and our selfish nature begins to resent all that we have to do for ourselves and for others – whether that’s in the name of ministry and/or making a living. Too easily we lose sight of what we’re doing and why we’re doing it, and we become defensive, protective of our space, and unwilling to even evaluate and discern how to give ourselves to others in love and service.
When I wrote the song “We Need Each Other,” I realized that I had allowed this same kind of busyness of life to really get to me. I realized that I had become too busy to communicate my thoughts and feelings to those closest to me – family, friends and partners in ministry. As a result, I had unresolved conflict in my life. There were things said, done, or left undone that I needed to deal with. However, something else always came first. I knew that in order to deal with any unresolved conflict in my life, I would have to step outside of my comfort zone and give a little extra to the people around me. My selfish heart kept telling me I didn’t have time to deal with the fact that my priorities were out of line – and that I was too tired to put the effort toward doing ‘one more thing,’ or even worse, that it didn’t really matter. The truth was that I was too scared, tired, and selfish to communicate honestly with the people most important to me. I was choosing “me” and ignoring the words of Jesus…
“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you,leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.”
Matthew 5:24-25
If we are true Christ followers, we choose to remember and live by what He says are the greatest two commandments, to love Him and to love others as ourselves (MT 22:36-39). That means taking time to contemplate the heart of the Holy Spirit, and ask and receive discernment about who and what is most important to God as it relates to our lives, and then asking for wisdom in how to best communicate with people who’ve hurt us and with those whom we have hurt. Mustering up the courage, time, and emotional energy to do what’s right; to communicate thoughts, feelings, failures, and needs.
Spirit, it goes against all that is me to choose another above myself. But I cry out to You anyway: please enable me to love beyond my natural capacity. I’m so grateful for your power in my life, and I open my heart to You now in faith. Thank You, Spirit of God.
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