hello and welcome to Alexandria Brave it I'm sure Dan Boise and I've title today's reading the marriage metaphor
 after 22 years together I sometimes wonder how my marriage to Marin works I'm a writer Marin is a statistician I work with Woods she works with numbers I want Beauty she wants function we come from different worlds
 there were two rides to appointments early I'm occasionally late I try new things on the menu she orders the same after twenty minutes of an I've got to hurry I'm just getting started while Marin is already in the cafe downstairs wondering how much longer I'll be we give each other many opportunities to learn patience we do have things in common a shared sense of humor all the travel and a common face that helps us pray through options and compromise is needed with this shed base I differences even with to our advantage now and has helped me learn to relax while I've helped who growing discipline looking with that differences has made us better people
 poll uses marriage is a metaphor for the church and with good reason like marriage Church brings very different people together requiring them to develop humility and patience and to bear with one another in love and as in marriage a shed base of faith and mutual service help the church become unified and mature
 differences in relationships can cause great frustration in the church and in marriage but managed will they can help us become more christ-like
 today's scripture reading is from Ephesians chapter 4 verses 22 13
 be completely humble and gentle be patient bearing with one another in love make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit through the bond of Peace there is one body and one Spirit just as you were cold to one hope when you a cold one Lord One Faith one baptism one God and Father of all who is overruled and through land animal
 but to each one of us Grace has been given as Christ abortion did this is why it says when he ascended on high he took many captives and gave gifts to his people
 what does he ascended mean except that he also descended to the lower Earthly regions he who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens in order to fill the whole universe the Christ himself gave the apostles the prophets the Evangelist the pastas and teaches to acquit his people for Wix of service so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the face and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ
 let's pray together
 by the way the rats in marriage or no families in friendships or indeed and our churches we all know that that combination of similarities and differences is just what makes a relationship so rich and also at times so very difficult load would you use the differences between us and our Brothers and Sisters in Christ to help us grow in humility and patience today so that we become more and more like him it's in Jesus name we pray this in
 thanks for listening today I'm sure we can Boise in today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries