I Have Brothers and Sisters to Grow Up With
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. Ephesians. 2:19
I hear this all the time ~ ‘My spiritual sisters (or brothers) are more my family than my real family.’ How many have found a home within their small group, or with a spiritual prayer partner! That is not surprising as it was God who told us in scripture that we, as His children, are a family of sons and daughters and He is our Father. This news is more precious and more life-saving if our family of origin left us without a sense of connectedness.
On a certain day, Jesus faced twelve of his disciples and prepared to send them out with a lengthy word of preparation. He said, “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Matthew 10:34 He went on to describe how family members will strain against each other because of one person’s loyalty to Jesus and another’s enmity to Christ. Maybe you know this firsthand. After believing in Jesus and making Him Lord of your life, spiritual sparks quickly manifested within your family. The news of your conversion wasn’t welcome. Where you once fit in, everything was different as you understood that you answered to God first. The sword of Truth divided you among your own people.
Even in Christians homes, there can be fractures. Many grew up without a father, or mother, or siblings. Others were in destructive relationships. If you’re like me, the generation who raised us were not good at communicating their feelings. They grew up in the depression and didn’t have the luxury of stopping to process how difficult life was. They dug deeply, bore the burden of providing for their loved ones, and through that provision, assumed that their kids (and spouses) knew they were loved. Knowing it and experiencing it are two different things however. Even with hardworking responsible parents, the emotional deprivation hangs like a shadow over your soul.
However deep the longing for family, and whatever the reason, it can be satisfied within God’s family. What draws us together is the shared experience of the Gospel. What binds us together is the Spirit of God who lives inside each of us. Worship and prayer, experienced corporately, offer poignant fellowship. The stronger a child of God is filled with the Spirit, the stronger the bond with another child of God who is also filled with the Spirit. The world calls it ‘chemistry’ but God calls it a Holy Spirit tie that is not easily broken.
Help me connect to more of Your children whose passion runs deep. Amen
Originally published Monday, 11 March 2019.
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