The Church is family

I know that I am a dreamer and naïve.  I live in hope of the perfect family. Maybe not quite white picket fences and apples pies cooling on the window sill, but I live in hope of the perfect family.  When I plan Christmas in my head I have visions of Nigella style cooking, family gathering around in their colourful but casual outfits, wine with no calories or hangovers, and laughter filling the air.  When Christmas actually happens…well lets just say the wine still happens! 

When it comes to the church family I am still a dreamer and naïve.  I live in hope of the perfect family.  A family that will love and support one another.  A family that will not judge one another, where you can find yourself in tragedy or disaster and still feel loved and wanted.  A family that embraces, a family that holds and supports, a family that laughs together, a family that spends time together. A family that will not stab you in the back.  A family that will look out for your best interests rather than seek individual glory or fame.  A family that will show the courtesy of respecting your space, your role, your position, knowing that you will do likewise.  For whatever is done by you as a member of the family, you can expect to be done in return. 

Family, however, are never perfect.  Families are made up of human beings who have good days, grumpy days, selfless and selfish days.  Days when sleep has been good and other days when caffeine is a must.  So we cannot expect the church family to be perfect either.  We are not family because of where we worship or the minister we follow.  We are family because we are children of God.  And no child is more important than another child.  I have two children that are mine through procreation and the wonder of childbirth.  I have a child who is mine because she chooses to be a child of mine.  I love them all and wouldn’t dream of sacrificing one over another…they are all very different – one even comes with a Yorkshire accent!  

So it is with God.  We are all his children, none of us is his favourite.  To be fair, I’m happy to give that particular title to Jesus and he sure earned it! Yet even Jesus said that we would do even greater things than him.  So it isn’t about titles or who is more spiritual or more clever or…it is about recognising that we are brothers and sisters in the family of God.  And for me, that means working together not against each other.  Competition is not of God, collaboration and community is of God.  Father-Son-Holy Spirit – different yet the same, collaborative and in community. 

 Personally, I have always wanted a church family where mistakes are absolved and helped, not judged and hindered, where all ages love and welcome one another, where we would socialise together not just worship, where we would bless each other without competing for glory or recognition, where we would listen for God not tell God what to do…where we might bring hope to families throughout the communities we serve.  There is a better way, and we can be family even as bunch of totally different people! We are the family of God - and one day our home will be together in the house that God built...😘

Every Blessing

Sarah