The Family I Have Always Wanted

Many people desire to be in a family or to belong to a community. This is a value because these people are given a sense of worth. They contribute to this family and the family in turn contributes to them. So, for many this is deep desire to want to be in a family. God has given us a family. God has given us his family. This is, “the family I have always wanted.” I am reminded of Abraham and how his family started. I am also reminded of my own family and the loss that we suffered. I am lastly reminded of the church, who is God’s family. Looking at these three examples of family will show us how God can and will give of the family we have always wanted.

Abraham was nearing one-hundred years old and he and his wife Sarah were with out a child to continue their family. This was especially important in those days. At was during this time that God spoke to Abraham saying:

I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God" (Genesis 17:5c-8).

What was Abraham’s response? Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, "Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety” (17:17)? Even though Abraham at first laughed at the idea, God still kept his promise to give Abraham not only a son (Isaac) but a great family. God promised to bless his family. Unexpectedly Abraham received “the family he always wanted.” This family was going to be God’s family. They would call the LORD God their God.

Since I can remember, I have had the desire to belong to a family. As a young child, my mom was sick and unable to care for me in the way that she wanted. She passed away of complications from diabetes, when I was 12 years old. My dad moved away after this and I lived with my grandparents. I was grateful for them but my family was somewhat incomplete. I felt this even more when my grandfather passed away later that same year. Was there a family out there that could give me a sense of worth? Was there a family out there that could comfort me? Was there a family out there that could be the family I always wanted? Thank God for his family!

In the New Testament the Apostle Paul talks about the family of Abraham. Paul says, “So the promise is received by faith. It is given as a free gift. And we are all certain to receive it, whether or not we live according to the Law of Moses, if we have faith like Abraham’s. For Abraham is the father of all who believe” (Romans 4:16). So we are included in Abraham’s family if we believe! It is a free gift! The promise of an everlasting covenant, the promise of blessing Israel and Israel being a blessing, and the promise of being in God’s family is for all who believe! We a part of God’s family. This is a family I want to be a part of. This is the family I have always wanted.

I very much desired to be a part of something greater than myself but at the same time provided me a place to belong. Many of us may feel the same way. We have suffered loss. We have been hurt. We struggle with depression. We struggle with loneliness. The list goes on but remember that God’s family includes you, if you believe in Christ. It is an unexpected family but it is the family I have always wanted!

Thanks for reading,

Marcelino

Where is God?

"In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit."
The Apostle Paul

Where is God? I often ask this question when things are not going well in my life. When I have felt alone or scared, I ask this question. Many of Psalms in the Old Testament ask this question, as well. The Psalmist new that YHWH (the God of Israel) dwelt in their temple, though his presence was not limited to it. This question is not a new question for God's people and humanity in general. The Apostle Paul gives the answer to this question in his letter to the Ephesians. Where is God? Where his people are at! What a truly shocking claim to make. God is making his people (both Jews and non-Jews) in to a dwelling place for God. This new family of God is where God is present! God is in their midst.

This past summer, I went to see "the Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" with some very good friends. It was very hot that day. Probably over 100 degrees. They had giant fans with water misters to keep us somewhat cool. The time came for us finally to go inside the studio. We had been waiting for hours to get inside the air-conditioning and of course to see Conan. When the taping finally began, the energy picked up in the audience. Then when Conan came out the place erupted with ovation for this very funny man. It was somewhat hard to believe that we were in the same room as Conan O'Brien. What excitement! Seeing my friends, who are bigger fans than I am of Conan, with so much excitement and joy on their faces was fun to see. I saw how people can get rather fanatical when they are near a celebrity. It was pretty cool and a great experience. It was well worth waiting in 100 degree heat. Being in the same room as Conan is rather noticeable and exciting but do we notice that God is also in the same room as his people?

God is not only in the same room as us but God is present within his people. God has made a new family made of all people. What if we notice that God is present in his family the way we notice when a celebrity is near us? What if God's people were consciously aware of his presence. Where is God? Where is God present? God is present in his people making them into a new humanity and a new family.

Thanks for reading,

Marcelino