My wife and I are an odd pairing. Besides the huge factor (she being female, me being male, like oil and water trying to mix) her maiden name was stone while my name was wood. That was a hint of things to come. She's tremendously organized and an excellent planner. I'm creative and spontaneous. If she has five dollars in her purse, it'll be there a week later. Me, I can't tell you where the cash went that I started out with this morning. Our marriage is an illustration of opposites attracting and how dissimilar people can become a truly unique and excellent team.
One enormous difference between her and me is that she is musical, I am not. If I try to carry a tune, my bucket has holes in it. I've gotten much better but not good enough for prime time. It has been said that the ushers in a church, if I am the visiting speaker, are prepared in advance to approach me with stun guns in order to make me stop clapping off beat. My lame excuse for rhythm dysfunctionality has been a source of unauthorized sharing on humorous church videos, much to my chagrin. People who can dance and sway and clap on time... they laugh at me. And yet I try so hard. I think more mercy is called for. I'm not deaf, I just move to a different beat.
All of this makes me marvel and wonder at human diversity. In my own life, as some people know, I have an identical twin brother. We look so much alike it's spooky, even as we grow older. But we do have differences. We are both Christians and teach the word, but he majored on business while I focused on the gospel. I tell people one of us is rich and the other is handsome. I'm the handsome one. During school, I excelled at English; he was good at math.
I'm frequently in awe of what people with certain gifts or talents can do. To me, their artistry seems mysterious and magical, beyond my reach. It causes me to know for sure that we truly do need each other, that we should appreciate one another. If you can do things that I cannot, then that shows me that I need you in my life. With this way of realistic thinking about ourselves, we can be at peace with our weaknesses. I don't have to do it all. I'm not a one-man band. We can rest in the fact that we weren't designed to live or work alone, never needing anyone else. Each part of the whole is meant to be different, but able to fit together with others who don't have the same strengths. We can be happily, healthily interdependent.
Take music for example. My wife can play the piano very well. I can play the radio. For years we've had an agreement: I won't play the piano and she won't play golf. Now, it's pickleball. It's okay to be different. She likes British shows. I like military movies. I like her and she likes me.
Lana and I recently spent time with marvelous friends in Bella Vista, Scott and Carolyn Buss. They lead the NW Arkansas worship and music ministry. The facility they built and the work they do is outstanding. They train young musicians and host events that teach the word of God, exalt Christ, and bring believers together. He's a concert violinist. She's a concert pianist. We're delightfully different yet we're wonderfully connected.
-- Ron Wood is a writer and minister. Email him at [email protected] or visit www.touchedbygrace.org. The opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 03/11/2020