photographs and thoughts on "family"

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. (1 John 3:1-3)

Well it’s one of those weekends with too much going on and not enough time. Yard work; people coming to work on the house; more people coming by the house; prepping for a quick hop out of town; details and more details.

Consequently I may be somewhat behind on the blog posts and way behind on my work. If you’re an editor, expecting something, then all I can say is I’m sorry!

TODAY: Today – Saturday – dawned breezy and deliciously cool. It was a perfect 66-degrees when I walked Scoutie and I felt a breath of reprieve from this past week’s onslaught of early summer. The photograph (above) was taken Thursday morning, but it illustrates the constant and invitational promise of every new day.

At the monthly FPCBrandon Saturday men’s breakfast, pastor Tim Black shared a thoughtful message designed to set the stage for table-discussion around the topic of family. I left the church both inspired and anxious to spend some time putting my thoughts “on paper.”

FAMILY: I wish I could remember exactly how the conversation went at our table. I said something along the lines of “God’s intention for family is to be a place where we learn to live in the context of community, where we can be accountable to one-another in love, and to be the place where we can develop the skills of self-giving love, serving and encouraging one-another….” I also affirmed the commonly held belief that family is a key building block for community.

…I also made a comment about the fact that some religious institutions have co-opted the conversation about family by taking the idea of “strong, loving families” and narrowing the definition. But I find myself wondering if it’s appropriate to strive only for “strong, loving families that look exactly like the 1950′s prime-time television version?” Or should we be striving for “strong, loving families,” period; families that come in all shapes, and sizes, and configurations?

And what about single persons? They are the fastest-growing adult demographic in the USA. Don’t they need the opportunity to grow in love, and mutual service, and accountability, and encouragement. What are we doing to help facilitate community with those who don’t live in a traditional structure?

In the garden this morning

QUESTIONS: I believe these are important questions. And I also believe the “family of God” has room for every single individual in our culture. Not just room to show up, but room to grow; to love and to be loved; to encourage and to be an encouragement; to learn and also to teach.

This is a conversation I trust that we can continue - DEREK