I vividly
remember a basketball game that our team played against a top Harare team (in
the mid-80’s) and which we lost. What
sticks in my mind is not so much the fact that we lost, but the example of our
opponents. They were a team that were
fit, skillful, hard working, focused but above all they possessed this amazing
quality of UNITY.
The player who missed a shot was
encouraged to try again, the player who
went after a loose ball but lost it was praised for his effort, when substituted
the outgoing player gave the incoming one a ‘high five’ and a slap on the
back. These were just some expressions
of unity, teamwork and friendship.
Their unity was based upon a few key
beliefs that were boldly evident..
Ø
They were there to win the
game. Defeat was not an option.
Ø
Each player deserved to be on
the court. Each was there by choice.
Ø
A deep respect for one
another. They genuinely liked each
other.
Ø
The other team was to be
defeated. They were playing against a team not each other.
Ø
The belief that they were the
best team. The team got the glory not
the individual.
Ø
They would win because they
played the best game. They would play
according to the rules and win. They demonstrated integrity of sportsmanship.
Unity is not that we are identical or
sing the same tune. Difference,
uniqueness does not mean disunity. I guess that’s why the Apostle Paul told the
Corinthian church to consider the example of the body, which is a unit, and yet
not all parts of the body are the same.. an eye has no capacity to smell,
neither does a foot have the ability to hear.
Unity operates at different levels and
each level is the platform to move to the next.. A break in unity cannot be repaired at the
level it occurs but rather at the level beneath. Unity is a journey not a destination.
Unity starts with the individual..
Personal unity. The Apostle James says
that a double-minded person is unstable in all their ways. (James 1:8).
