What A Fellowship!

Tomorrow my daughter Shanna and her husband Doug are moving away. They are not just moving to a new home, they are moving to a new state! In addition they are beginning a whole new phase of their life. My children have come and gone – to college, to different ministries – my son Stephen has been away from home since he left to go to college and living in another state. This is the second time that a daughter has moved – and even though that move was only an hour and twenty minutes or so – it was so difficult – so hard to be away from my grandchildren – all my children have lived in close proximity to me since the day they were born.

I’m not sad – I’m excited for them – but it hasn’t settled in yet. They’ve always been just a phone call away – in fact very often I’ll call and let them know I cooked and invite them to come over on their way home for dinner. That won’t be possible – it makes me wonder – whose life is really going to change – theirs –or mine!

Seasons change, our children grow up – they re-locate to get (or keep) their jobs – adjustments are needed. One thing I have tried to do is keep my children close, one of the benefits of a big family – when the world gives them trouble – they have a world of their own.
The good news about being a Christian is that when you meet new people, very often they quickly enter in as family – sharing the same Father – and because of Christ – going thorugh many of the same experiences can knit hearts together to the degree that you can say, “we’ve bound by blood!” Wherever we are, wherever we go – if the cause of Christ is preached – there is family!

And just as each of my eight children and fourteen grand-children are different – different personalities, abilities; some are talkative, some are not; some are able to sing – some dance; some are preachers – some are not! But each of them are joined by blood and by love – and they support each other in the time of celebrations, and find each other in those times of pain.

So too, in a body of believers that has found out that each of us is to be valued for who we are, for what we do, and most of all because we belong to Him!

What a fellowship! What a joy divine, leaning on the everlasting arms! What a blessedness, what a peace is mine, Leaning on the everlasting arms!

“Since this is the kind of life we have chosen, the life of the Spirit, let us make sure that we do not just hold it as an idea in our heads or a sentiment in our hearts, but work out its implications in every detail of our lives. That means we will not compare ourselves with each other as if one of us were better and another worse. We have far more interesting things to do with our lives. Each of us is an original.”

Galatians 5: 25-26 (MSG)

God Bless You,
Maria