Strengthening Your Family Ties

Strengthening Your Family Ties

Our family has moved a few times. Sometimes I was happy about it and other times I was very upset. We moved twice after our kids were in school and they found that hard. They had to say goodbye to special friends. We were always blessed finding a new church home where we belonged and who became our family.

God has set us in families. We all need that special relationship which helps us feel secure and gives us that feeling of belonging. In our era extended families are scattered and busy. It’s a challenge to stay close to family when you’re spread across the nation or even the world.

So how can we strengthen our relationships and keep some family closeness? With the internet today it’s easy to keep up with loved ones around the world. I also value our special phone packages that allow me to call my siblings at the drop of a hat. Planned family reunions are easier now a days than in our grandparents’ time. Travel is less expensive and you can easily fly to most places in the world.

It wasn’t like that for Jacob and his family as they left Laban and moved to be with Isaac. Leah and Rachel knew they would never see their father or brothers again. Their children would never see their grandparents again.

But Jacob had a special closeness with God and God had told him it was time to move back to the land God had given his grandfather, Abraham. When God directs our plans and tells us to once more pack up and move on we can be sure that is the best and only time to go and we can be certain He has a special blessing waiting for us at the end.

To Share with Your Children:

If you have ever had to pull up roots and move away from your grandparents and cousins or very special friend you know how hard it is. For awhile after you move into your new home you miss all those people you left behind so much. Hopefully you make some terrific friends who become as close to you as family.

God encourages us to have close relationships with family and with friends. In the book of Ruth we read about the closeness of Ruth and her mother-in-law, Naomi. The Bible also tells the story of the unusual warm friendship between two friends, David and Jonathan. In 1 John 4:7 God says: “Dear friends, let us practice loving each other, for love comes from God and those who are loving and kind show that they are the children of God, and that they are getting to know him better.” Then in verse 11 He adds, “Dear friends, since God loved us as much as that, we surely ought to love each other too.”

God says in the Bible that He sets us in families. We can ask Him to place those special relationships into our lives. He cares about the emotional part of our life as much as He cares about the spiritual.

———————————

I want to walk with you spiritually this year, inviting you to read the Bible through from cover to cover; from Genesis 1 all the way to Revelation 22:21. If that sounds too difficult for you and your kids, you can join in again after you have taken a break or join us for the days you’re up to it. We will start on Sunday, January 18th and finish Saturday, January 16, 2010. I promise that you will understand the Bible in a much deeper way if you read it through from cover to cover in a year’s time.

Accept my challenge to read the Bible through in one year chronologically, including the Old and the New Testament.

Day 15: Today read:
Genesis 31:17-32:12
Matthew 10:24-11:6
Psalm 13:1-6
Proverbs 3:16-18

—————————-

This devotion is copyright protected and all rights are reserved worldwide. You are free to use this devotion with your family or with your class. However, it may not be reprinted or republished in any form without written consent from Ruth Willms. If you would like to request permission to republish this devotion, please contact Ruth at ruth.willms@gmail.com