Word of the Post
Today's word is: nuclear
/nu"cle*ar/ adjective
Of, pertaining to, or powered by atomic energy; constituting the nucleus of a cell; a popular familial design, consisting of one father, one mother, and one or more children. I included this, because even the President has a tendency to mispronounce this as /nu"cu*lar/, which makes me cringe.
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I come from a nuclear family, as does my husband. One father, one mother (still married after 30+ years) and one sibling. We are both the elder of two children. We are a rare breed. Many of my friends come from divorced families. The fact that both our families are still intact seems nothing short of a miracle to me. This age of "disposable" everything has been the enemy of family.
We must fight for the family. God planned us to have families. He designed the Church to be our surrogate family. When all hope is gone, when physical family can't or won't be around, we are to depend on God's family; the Church. We must fight to keep these sacred. Physical family and Church family. To throw them away is to spit in the face of God. My friend Ferret said it best: Don't stand up in front of God and witnesses, and say, "until Death do us part" unless you are willing to fight to the death to keep those marriage vows.
Jeff's dad is being installed as a Deacon at their church congregation. This is big news to me. The Bible is very clear on who may, and who may not, hold that office. This plants a lot of responsibility on the children of the family. That suddenly means ME. Dad's "household of faith" includes the spouses his children have chosen. If I were a terrible person, the church could tell dad that he had no place in their ranks. That is a very sobering thought to me. Especially knowing me so well. I know all the secret stuff that only God knows, and I don't like it. It's not that any of it is in God's books anymore; it has all been washed away by the blood of Jesus, and I am continually being cleansed by Him. It's just that I know that I could be better. I mean, couldn't we all?
3 comments:
This harkens back to the post I did on Saturday, but with actual, personal, and immediate application. Take heart, as God, knowing all that secret stuff about you, still wants Jeff's dad as a deacon. Take it as an expression of His confidence in you.
My parents are still together (miraculously) after 32 years. Jen's divorced when she was 7. The impact that each has had on us is evident. Divorce is a horrible thing. It is never better for kids, even if the parents are on good terms (which Jen's weren't). And we have yet to experience a church that truly functions as an open surrogate family, though we have met people at church who have become our family. Those are worth working for and fighting for.
PS That would be ("noo-kyoo'ler) for proper pronunciation. Homer Simpson, who works at Springfield Nuclear Power plant, said so. Who says you can't learn anything from TV?
It is so sad that a nuclear family is more the exception than the rule. Brian and I both come from nuclear families. wow!
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