My Adopted Family

My Adopted Family

"Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."

(Matthew 12:50)

Being an only child, this scripture has always had a lot of meaning for me. It felt so good to know that I had brothers and sisters in Christ. I was adopted into the family of God. I was under God's will and His blessing. But what did this really mean and what should I do in this family?

Most of my earthly family didn't follow through on doing God's will. They walked their own walk. As the child of an alcoholic father, the name father meant fun, but neither financial responsibility nor dependability. How could I possibly depend on a God I couldn't see or feel?  So this earthly family who did not follow God's will was all I had. Fortunately, God kept sending people into my life who did his will, who were much better examples of family for me, until I figured it out.

If you happen to be in a family who do not truly represent the will or family of God, just ask the Heavenly Father, who is dependable, to help you find His family. You will most likely find them in a church. You will recognize them when you are faced with crises and they demonstrate God's love to you in so many ways, but mostly praying with and for you. They will be bringing you food, taking care of  your children when you  can't, running errands for you, sitting in the hospital with you and all the other servant things God has gifted this family to do.  Most of the time, you don't even have to ask, He just sends them and the Spirit leads them to do the right thing.

This is how we learn unconditional love and witnessing through concern and kindness. This is where we recognize the gifts our Heavenly father has blessed us with. This passage is the foundation of our personal witness. Thanks be to God, His Son and His Holy Spirit for loving us so we can love others and join God's family as His special adopted sons and daughters. Whose life do you need to touch for the Lord? Don't forget to tell them that we were adopted through Christ's work on the Cross and by His Grace, nothing we personally have done except to respond to the call.