There is a reason the Bible talks about faith, hope, and love so often. Faith forms the life-long basis of our connection to God. Hope helps us to live for what will be rather than merely for what is. Love is the way we live.

But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered themselves together. One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 

And He said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and foremost commandment.

The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”   – Matthew 22:34-40

A strong family thrives on love. The limitations, challenges, disappointments, and triumphs of life all are overcome by love: love for God and love for others. If the goal of life is a satisfied mind, heart, and soul – then love is the key.

Here is your love conversation sheet.

To talk about how love is unfolding in your family – as well as how love could grow – is a great ongoing discussion. It grows the family heart!

 

Every family has unique characteristics – a recipe if you will. Vigilant parents will implement internal agreements which guide the family heart. For instance, while we were big on communicating what we felt, we were also committed to being respectful with one another. This was both a spoken and unspoken part of the core of who we were.

To this day we see each of our grown children (and grandchildren) implement this standard in how they neighbor, do business, and parent. Very gratifying!

“I have a serious concern to bring up with you, my friends, using the authority of Jesus, our Master. I’ll put it as urgently as I can: You must get along with each other. You must learn to be considerate of one another, cultivating a life in common.“
– 1 Corinthians 1:10/Message

Firing up the making Family Agreements conversation

 

The stewardship of a family is incredibly practical in so many ways. The skills we cultivate, the values we instill, and the example we provide are all very powerful. But the most important ingredient of family life is spirituality. Connectedness with our Creator. Bending before His Son Jesus. Finding the hope of eternal life.

This occurs primarily through prayer. I heard a quote once I have carried with me: “After we have done all, we must count on God to do all.” We have responsibility to be good parents. But perhaps our greatest tool is going to the throne of God’s grace on behalf of those we love. What better thing can we impart to our growing family members?!

“Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my trials on your behalf, for they are your glory. For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, 

so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all Christ-followers what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.”
– Ephesians 3:13-19

The power of God unlocked into the hearts of those we love. Wow.

Praying for our Family Conversation 

 

 

Probably the greatest human need is for all of us to awaken from our sleepy dream. This life, while very present and real, is completely to be lived in light of the life to come.

The successful family heart learns to look outward. This is part of what it means to love our neighbor as ourselves. If we can view our neighbors with God’s eyes and heart and a t accordingly, then we will hear the words “well done” when we stand before our Master.

Of course we want our children to succeed. To love. To grow. To find happiness and peace. But to participate in building Jesus’ Kingdom is the ultimate accomplishment. This is central to the family heart. To join with God in praying for the heart of our cities.

“But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. 

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. 

Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.”  – 2 Peter 3:8-13

Check this out: Catalyst.city
Let’s pray for our neighbors!

 

As we mentioned before, God IS family! He is the great Father of all Living, and it is in His core to shelter those who are lost or vulnerable. The heart of God is to provide shelter from the storms around us – both those internal and external.

The family heart is all about sheltering for a time so God-shelter can be multiplied throughout generations. It is our calling as parents. It involves protection and nurturing. It is brought about by hard, intentional work as well as relying upon God’s Spirit to make it happen in our hearts, those of our children, and for those around us.

And He said, “How shall we picture the kingdom of God, or by what parable shall we present it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds that are upon the soil, yet when it is sown, it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and forms large branches; so that the birds of the air can nest under its shade.”  – Mark 4:30-32

To the extent we receive God’s shelter in heartfelt gratefulness and extend this shelter to others, we participate in the Kingdom of heaven. This is the very nature of the Kingdom, and the heart of a family who looks upward, inward, and outward into our world.

Your family shelter conversation

Hope you are having a meaningful time. Enjoy!