My grandmother loved birds. She painted pictures of birds. She collected bird figurines and fine dishes from the Audubon Society. Her flower garden was alive with chatter and bursts of color swooping from branch to branch. I share this love with her.

Upon Grandmother’s death, I received a porcelain figurine of a bluebird perched on a dogwood branch. This too had come from the Audubon Society many years ago. Not only was it pleasant to my eye, but also its beauty connected me to my grandmother’s heart. No dollar amount could ever replace the joy this little guy brought me.

My boys were ages three and four. Wrestling Mania was big at our house—at least the Jones brothers’ version. They giggled and tumbled, somersaulting with legs thrashing. Whoops of joy pinged through the house.

And then it happened.

A flailing leg got too close to the coffee table and slammed into the bluebird. Wings shattered. Hearts broke.

“Mommy, Mommy! We’re sorry. We’re so sorry, Mommy.”

I felt sick, but the remorse from my boys kept me tethered to sanity.

“It’s okay. I’ll find a way to fix, it. It’s okay.” 

Oh Lord, How am I going to repair this damage? It will never be the same.

I remembered the superglue in the kitchen cabinet. Maybe, just maybe. I gathered the fractured bird and carefully carried the pieces to the kitchen table. Piece by broken piece, I molded the bluebird back to its former beauty. The lines of fragmentation were visible if examined closely, but the superglue did the trick. Bonded. Restored. Complete.

Fellowship is like that.

The Greek word for “fellowship” is koinonia (koy-nohn-ee-ah) and means sharing, unity, partnership. It denotes an intimate bond. “Koinonia cements the believers to the Lord Jesus and to each other” (Spirit Filled Life Bible, page 1628). Imagine being so bonded to the Lord that nothing can separate you from Him. Consider also that in the bonding you find restoration and completeness. **

Isn’t God wonderful in His faithfulness to His children? And isn’t He wise in binding His children into this fascinating entity called the Body of Christ, bonded through koinonia where we rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep?

Koinonia—where we hold up our sister’s arms in praise during the fiercest battles when she can no longer hold them up herself.

Koinonia—where prayer for one another comes as easily and consistently as our next breath. 

Many of us can attest to great afflictions these days. I believe the Lord is allowing much sifting and shaking among His children so that we can not only gain a better understanding of the essence of who He is and the depth of His great love, but also so we can learn to function as His Body—a Body that supports and prays for one another with unconditional love and locks arms with one another to stand firm against the attacks of the enemy.

“No one has seen God at any time. But if we love one another [with unselfish concern], God abides in us, and His love [the love that is His essence abides in us and] is completed and perfected in us. By this we know [with confident assurance] that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given to us His [Holy] Spirit.” ~ 1 John 4:12-13, AMP

Sometimes in our wrestling, punches are thrown, legs flail, and lives lay shattered around us. I want to be that superglue that helps my sister put the pieces back together again. How about you?

From Our Hearts to Yours,

Nan & Marcie  

** Excerpt taken from The Perils of a Pastor’s Wife by Nan Jones, chapter four: The Fellowship of His Sufferings

God’s Superglue that Mends the Broken by Nan Jones

Imagine being so bonded to the Lord nothing can separate you from Him 

I want to be superglue that helps my sister put pieces back together

Nan
Jones is an author/speaker who uses the words of her heart to assist fellow
Christians in discovering the Presence of God in their darkest hour. Her book, The
Perils of a Pastor’s Wife was a 2016 Selah finalist and her blog, Beyond
the Veil, won first place in the Foundation Awards at the 2017 Blue
Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference. Nan is also a monthly contributor
to Inspire
a Fire, a far-reaching inspirational blog. When Nan isn’t writing, she
enjoys leading prayer retreats, teaching bible studies or sharing God’s
faithfulness as keynote speaker for special events. You may visit Nan at her
website: www.NanJones.com or her
facebook ministry page, Seeing
Beyond The Veil. For personal communication you may email Nan at nan@nanjones.com

The Perils of a Pastor’s Wife is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and LPC Bookstore