Unity in the Family

Emily’s family had a really rough month! First her dad lost his job. When he couldn’t find another one that paid as well, they sold their large home with a pool and moved into a tiny house. Then her mom discovered she was expecting another baby. Emily was in turmoil—until one evening they had a family round table discussion about their situation.

“Loving God comes first,” her dad said, “and then loving each other. If we pull together, we can make this work.” The discussion that followed brought out different ideas for making money, cutting costs, and helping care for the baby when it arrived. There were many different ideas—but the family was like-minded about their purpose: loving God and loving each other.

Unity should exist among Christians. This doesn’t mean thinking exactly alike on everything. It means having the common goal of working together and serving one another, of being “perfectly united in mind and thought.” (1 Corinthians 1:10 TNIV) Being unified comes with the promise of a great reward: God’s presence in your life. “Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.” (2 Corinthians 13:11 NKJV) Stand united!

Honoring Parents

Sophia’s mom died when she was only five years old, and when Sophia was eight, her dad remarried. Sophia liked Susan, her stepmother, except when she told her to do her homework or wash supper dishes. “You’re not my real mom,” Sophia said, “so you can’t tell me what to do.” When she complained to her best friend, Taylor, about it, Taylor only laughed. “You wouldn’t like washing dishes even if Susan was your real mom.” Sophia admitted Taylor was right. Even if her real mom was still alive, she wouldn’t want to do her homework or chores.

It’s not about whether you like doing what your parents ask. It’s about being obedient because you love God. What if you have a cranky parent who is hard to please? What if they rarely say “thank you” or give you encouraging words? Does God still want you to obey parents like this? Yes. Your parents’ attitude has nothing to do with it. It might seem unfair, but the Lord is pleased when you’re obedient in everything, no matter what. It’s certainly easier to obey anyone—parent, teacher, boss—who is kind and encouraging. But you can trust God to give you the strength to obey those in authority over you, no matter how they act. God will richly reward you for obeying when it’s hard.

Worth Waiting For

Stephanie’s parents had separated, but not yet divorced. They were trying to work out their problems, but Stephanie feared that things were going from bad to worse. She helped out at home with her little sister and cleaning the apartment, and she prayed every night for her parents to be reunited. The eleven months she waited—praying every night and expecting God to work a miracle—were the longest months of her life. At times, she didn’t think God had even heard her. Yet she continued to look forward to her family being restored. At the end of eleven long months, when her parents were back together, did Stephanie think that waiting on God had been worth it? You bet! “The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him.” (Lamentations 3:25 TNIV)

In Webster’s dictionary, waiting is defined as “remaining inactive in one place while expecting something and looking forward to something.” Believers are waiting and expecting God to go to work for them, to work things out and make things happen that only God can make happen. “The Lord longs to be gracious to you; . . . Blessed are all who wait for him!”(Isaiah 30:18 TNIV) Whatever you’re facing, pray and wait for God to act.