Daily Thought for Monday, June 20th

June 20, 2011

A Dysfunctional Family

Today’s Thought:

“Every family tree always produces nuts.” – Anonymous

Today’s Quote:

“People talk about dysfunctional families; I’ve never seen any other kind.” – Sue Grafton

Today’s Question

Have you ever considered: “He that has no fools, knaves, nor beggars in his family, was begot by a flash of lightening?” – Thomas Fuller

Today’s Bible Verses:                   Ephesians 3:14-19

For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,  That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;  And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. 

Today’s Spiritual Thought:

What elements must exist to comprise a family?  According to Ogden Nash, “A family is a unit composed not only of children but of men, women, an occasional animal, and the common cold.”

Today’s family units, in many instances, have blurred lines, with half-brothers and half-sisters and children living under one roof whose collective parents may be scattered.  And keep in mind family is not restricted to the direct parent, child, and sibling dynamics, there are Aunt’s Uncles, Grandparents, cousins, nieces, nephews and you get the picture.  But did you realize that if we traced our family tree all the way back, as far is it would go, we would all find that we are all related by virtue of our lineage from Adam and Eve?

So to say that all families are dysfunctional, is an absolute truth.  Eventually, if you go back far enough, you are going to find something unusual somewhere along the line.

And this is true of our spiritual family as well.  Even though we are all blood bought and redeemed:  I think it is safe to say, there are still a few odd balls in the family of God.  I’m pretty sure I’m one of them.

But dysfunctional or not, family is very important, both our natural families and our spiritual ones. 

Because, “As the family goes, so goes the nation and so goes the whole world in which we live.” – Pole John Paul II

That is why:

“I'm so glad I'm a part of the Family of God,
I've been washed in the fountain, cleansed by His Blood!
Joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod,
For I'm part of the family,
The Family of God”

- Bill and Gloria Gaither

Today’s Prayer:

Father, we can’t choose our family but we can love them more and work harder at getting along with them, even if some of them might be a bit odd.  So help us realize we are all a part of each other and whether we like it or not – we need each other.