one rock

I remember the excitement I felt as we approached the Rock of Gibraltar.  I was on a Navy cruise in the Mediterranean.  I was sure the view would be familiar because I'd seen the Rock of Gibraltar many times in ads by a familiar insurance company.  Oddly, as we passed the mighty point, it didn't look anything like the familiar picture.  It was very impressive...just different.  I was surprised.  There is only one Rock of Gibraltar, but depending on your view, it can have many varied appearances.  This morning I was struck by the scripture from Ephesians 4:4-6 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;  one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. I'm sure that the individual who captured Gibraltar's image was looking from a perspective that I didn't happen to share.  I was travelling a different course as I gazed upward.  Nonetheless, there is only one Rock of Gibraltar.  Similarly, there is only one Heavenly Father and one Holy Spirit and one way to know Him, through awakened faith in Jesus' work on a different rocky hill.   Once we've come to know Him, our different perspectives are meant to encourage and complete our picture rather than to divide and confuse us.  Just as I let my preconception of the Rock of Gibraltar affect my experience, we can also allow preconceptions of the Lord to override His actual appearance.  Rather, we can benefit as we compare our individual "views" of the only true God, as we travel our unique paths.   blessings, Rob Smith