If a martian was visiting earth, one of his first questions about people might be, “So, how did you guys end up being in the same family?”
ABOVE: Some of us are just blessed.
My answer: “Uh, uh, it’s kind of hard to explain.”
Pat answer: “In God’s unique plan for his ultimate ends, he placed me in the family I am in.”
Martian, “So, who is the God-dude?”
Unless we are an only-child, most of us grow up with sibs. We get used to them and mom and dad and we never knew any different. It’s impossible to think of life without them… the fun, the dinner table, the talks, the beating up on each other, the sibling rivalry, the holidays, birthdays, pets, neighborhoods, etc.
We don’t give all that much thought as to why we were placed in a particular family by the God-dude. In a sense, we simply think our lives have and always will intersect with our perfect or dysfunctional family – whichever applies. (Let me guess.)
But intersections with our family are some of the most important. The older sib who helped us or who was mean. The brother or sister who was/is always sick. The loner. The black or white sheep. And on and on it goes.
These intersections were our first impressions of how life was supposed to be or not supposed to be.
Maybe it would be good to think about why you ended up in the family you did and dictate a note on your smart phone or old-school a few sentences on an index card and keep it in your pocket in case you bump into your local, friendly martian.
PORTAL TO HEAVEN: Our families intersected our lives for the better or worse. To ignore it as serendipitous is a cop-out. Those relationships, treasured or tortuous, bonded or broken, living up to a family name or living to forget it, are an eye-opener for us humans who can learn a lot from a quick chat with martians.
But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord…But the lovingkindness of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, And His righteousness to children’s children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments…Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’—which is the first commandment with a promise— ‘so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.’ Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.…we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them.
Joshua 24:15 (NIV)…Psalm 103:17,18 (NASB), Ephesians 6:1-4 (NIV), Hebrews 12:9(ESV)