When everything has lost its meaning, the meaning of family and what it stands for remains the same. Family is the strongest unit in one’s life and it does not matter what kind of family one belongs to. Families teach us to care, love unconditionally, communicate effectively and to accept people as they are. You may be from a joint family, extended family, nuclear family or any other kind but the relationships we have with our members make our families strong.
The things one learns from their family brings them closer. We learn how to deal with the world through our family first. They are our first school and the experiences strengthen the bond. It gives us reason to stand by each other as we share the same virtues.
Friends love through all kinds of weather, and families stick together in all kinds of trouble.
Proverbs 17:17 MSG
https://bible.com/bible/97/pro.17.17.MSG
1.Family is the essence that helps us define our very identity
Remember the prodigal son after going rogue with his inheritance, undisciplined and dissipated, he wasted everything away and when all “ships” had shipwrecked and hit rock bottom, he thought of His father, he got right up and went straight home to his father whose heart pound, ran up to him to welcome him back, gave him a tight squeeze and kissed him. Here the father showed the importance of a support system by epitomizing devotion, love and care. The dad brought about a sense of belongingness to a lost soul who saw himself unworthy and undeserving but going back home where he belonged restored back his identity and joy.
2.Family means believing, loving and supporting each other.
A family as a support system means covering one’s nakedness. Its the most noble thing to do and it also preserves dignity, it also confers blessings. Even in unbecoming situations.
The best of men can’t stand upright just like how Noah got drunk and naked. Ham did nothing to preserve the dignity of his father .When Noah regained his sobriety, he cursed Ham and his descendants and blessed Shem and Japheth who had covered up his nakedness literally and figuratively!
Loyalty strengthens a family. When you have a family, you are devoted to them. You stick by them through the hard times and celebrate in their happy times. A family always supports and backs each other. They stand up for each other in front of a third party trying to harm them proving their loyalty.Family means standing up for each other and not against each other -covering one’s faults.
3. Oh yes you are definitely your brother’s/sister’s keeper!
Afterwards, the Lord asked Cain, “Where is your brother? Where is Abel?” “I don’t know,” Cain responded. “Am I my brother’s guardian?”
Genesis 4:9 NLT
Cain lost it the moment he snubbed at God and gave him a cold response!
Family is all about caring and selflessness and looking out for one another. It keeps us sane and helps us maintain healthy relationships. Sibling rivalry shouldn’t be condoned at all in families as it breeds jealousy, hatred and bitterness. Instead of complementing each other, we end up competing against each other and in the end, fail to account for one another and protect each other. Your sibling is your responsibility!
Many times we take for granted the support conferred by a family unit. It’s so easy to feel overwhelmed by the love, attention and overprotectiveness from family members. We feel like they are sticking their nose where it doesn’t belong, we feel like they have to allow us to live our lives on our terms and allow us to make our own choices and mistakes. We get so angry and get into fights whenever they advise us against something, fights that even you yourself after thinking hard deep about it you really know you are wrong and that proceeding along will end you up in a deep plunge and a dead end.
After all, has been said and done, no matter how much we mess up and find ourselves running and relying on the wrong kind of support, the family is the theatrical backdrop to everything, we cannot evade the ties that bind us with blood.No man is an island. Partners lose interest, friends change cities and forget but as the old adage goes, blood is thicker than water, the family unit never goes away, its the home we retire to when everything falls apart!
In conclusion, families are the keeper of one’s identity, the custodians of the keys to one’s unfettered, more fundamental self.
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Robert Frost wrote that, “Home is the place, that when you have to go there, they have to take you in.” The way God designed it, our family is supposed to be that way. For me it wasn’t my parents but my grandparents who were family and home for me when I was like that prodigal. Best of all is that when we return with a humble heart to Jesus, He may not “have to” take us, but He freely chooses to wrap His arms around us, just like the prodigal’s daddy. Have a blessed weekend!
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