Partnership

By Pastor Paul Gauche

Today’s Word: Partnership as in… “Two people are better than one. They can help each other in everything they do.” So said the writer of an ancient collection of Hebrew wisdom in the book of Ecclesiastes. Ancient wisdom for every generation.

We’ve all had moments when we’ve needed someone’s help.

Half a lifetime ago, I worked on a gillnetting boat with my dad. We lived on Whidbey Island and often fished the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Rosario Strait in the Salish Sea. Our boat – a stern picker – had a large spool and a roller on the aft deck for reeling gillnet on and off. The net was 50 yards long by 8 feet deep, with a lead line on the bottom and a cork line on top. A small buoy with a light attached indicated the end of the net for the fishing crew.

Fishing at night near Deception Pass, we noticed a light between our boat and the buoy at the end of our net. Initially thinking that a small boat was moving toward our net, we turned on a spotlight revealing not another moving boat but a stationary navigational buoy anchored to the bottom of Rosario Strait.

Springing into action, we began working together to pull the net up and over the top of the navigational buoy, made more difficult with each passing second as the strong tide carried our boat away from the buoy. Finally, reminding me to be careful, my dad said there would be a slingshot effect on us and the boat, as the last part of the net was free. He was correct.

I hesitate to think what might have happened if the two of us had only been one of us.

The ancient writers remind us that partnerships are necessary. Collaboration is essential; two are better than one. It’s better to go out two by two. One person plants, and another person waters.

Who are your partners, collaborators, teammates, planters, and waterers? Knowing who they are will help you define your role as a partner. We are all stronger together.

#100days50words

Paul Gauche is the Pastor of Life Transitions at Prince of Peace. His posts are part of his #100days50words project, where he blogs about a different word each week. You can follow his project on Instagram (@pgauche) or his blog, Thriving Rhythms.