What a full last couple of days as the new school year has begun. Thank You, Father, for Your hand in keeping us safe and getting everybody from home to school and back again.

1 Timothy 5:1-2 (<<click here to read the passage)

Our families play crucial roles in all our lives. And if they are to have the greatest beneficial impact, they must be families bent on living out Your call on their lives, Lord.

In this passage, Paul calls upon Timothy to interact with people in his church as he would with his own family. When I think about this in my own life, it is not difficult to do so. I grew up in a loving, supportive family. I still love and respect my mom, my dad, and my sister. I would do anything within my power to help them, and they would do the same for me. As time has passed, I feel the same way about my wife, my son, my brother- and sister-in-law, as well as my two nieces and nephew. I have a loving and supportive family, so it’s easy to parlay that wonderful blessing over to those in my churches.

But, Lord, I am well aware of the fact that not everyone shares this blessing. Sin has brought much hurt and pain to families across the globe. Many will carry scars of abuse for the rest of their lives, be it emotional or physical. And, of course, it is a multi-faceted problem involving relationships with parent to child and child to parent, husbands to wives, and siblings to siblings.

Lord, a simple prayer seems too little too late to address this issue, which is so deep and so wide, but I lift it up anyway, for You care about every child and man and woman who would do anything to be truly loved. I pray for them, Lord, but enable me… give me the wisdom and the power and the courage to be Your hands and feet… to love others as You have loved me… as You have inspired my family to love me and how I have loved my family. Help me, help us all, Lord, to love You with “all of our heart, soul, mind and strength” and, in so doing, to love our neighbor (…our family) as ourselves.

(Sept 18th, 2015, Fri, 6:57 am)
Sept 4th, 2024, Wed, 5:58 pm