Extended Family

Extended Family
By John Fischer

“When I think of the wisdom and scope of his plan I fall down on my knees and pray to the Father of all the great family of God—some of them already in heaven and some down here on earth. (Ephesians 3:14 & 15 LB)

Wow, that’s a pretty big family. What’s it like to be related to such a big group? It means you’re not alone. You can go just about anywhere in the world and find people that you belong to—brothers and sisters that will welcome you—kindred that will invite you in. Virtually anywhere in the world you can find people who may speak a different language, but possess the same Spirit. There’s a common bond that binds all believers together among all races and all nations. It’s an invisible knowing—a unified common belief: one Lord, one faith, one baptism, because there is only one God and Father of us all, and he in us, and living through us.

It means lots of privileges. You have a great Father in heaven who promises to supply you with all you need according to his riches in glory. You have access at any time directly into his office. His door is always open; you don’t have to knock. You don’t have to go through a secretary or a bodyguard to get to him. You can walk right in and sit on his lap and tell him what you need, or just be there, and enjoy his embrace. He loves that too.

It means you are important. Someone wanted you to exist. Someone knows you by name. Someone called you before you even knew it, to be his child, and someone paid a huge price to make it possible for you to be adopted into this family. You are wanted, desired, and looked after. A way has been prepared for you, even for your future that you do not know yet. You are no accident.

Most of all it means you are loved, not only by God, but by all those in his family. And if it seems that some of your brothers and sisters aren’t too loving, it’s just because, well, we’re all growing up, and we all have a ways to go, but the power to love is there, nonetheless. Just like our earthly families, we have a hard time getting along sometimes, but in the end we stick together because we’re blood. Well, we’re blood in God’s family, too, precious blood—shed on a cross that we might all live eternally together.