Unity of the Family in the Christian Church--vision & conclusion

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Unity of the Family in
the Christian Church the vision & conclusion by Heidi Bingham

DEU 12:12 You shall rejoice before the Lord you God, you and your son and your daughter

**Praise and Worship Music**
for your listening pleasure.
	Awesome God	I Will Celebrate
	In Moments Like These	I Stand in Awe of You
	I Lift your Name on High	Celebrate Jesus
	Trees of the Field	King of Kings
	Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus	I Worship You
Thanks to:

The Vision part 1

It's Sunday morning, early August. Mr. & Mrs. Doe are taking 6 year old Johnny to church. They are tired, stressed, and searching for some answers to help their family. They are greeted at the door by Usher1 who points them to the correct room to drop of Johnny. Usher2 leads them to their seats where they drop in relief. Finally, a break from correcting Johnny's continual misbehavior.

After service, they join the line of parents going to get their children, then proceed to fellowship hall for doughnuts and coffee. Johnny grabs a doughnut and runs around with some of the other kids. Mr. & Mrs. Doe sip their coffee listen to some of the talk going on around them.

Mom1:	Only 3 more weeks until school starts. I can't wait.
Mom2:	Me, either. It's been a long summer. I'm ready for a break from these kids.
Mom1:	Me, too. The constant bickering and fighting has been driving me crazy.
Mom2:	When does your youngest start school?
Mom1:	This year, thankfully. And we've enrolled him in all day kindergarten.
Mom2:	You're lucky. I have one more year before our baby goes to school. Then I get some peace and quiet.

(note: if you think I'm being harsh with the above dialog,
I've heard these things from the mouths of Christian parents!)

Finally, a man approaches the Does and invites them to attend Bible study at his home that evening.

Mr. Doe:	Oh, we couldn't. We don't really have anyone to watch Johnny.
Man:	No problem. We have a children's program here at the church. It gives us a chance to fellowship and study without the noise. Just drop him off here ahead of time. The study starts at seven.
Mrs. Doe:	Well, it does sound like a nice break.

As Mr. and Mrs. Doe are leaving they chat.

Mrs. Doe:	You know, I wasn't too sure about this church thing, but I was rather comfortable here.
Mr. Doe:	Me, too. These Christians aren't so bad. Matter of fact, they're a lot like us.

The Vision part 2

It's Sunday morning, early August. Mr. & Mrs. Doe are taking 6 year old Johnny to church. They are tired, stressed, and searching for some answers to help their family. They are greeted at the door by Usher who leads them to their seats. They sit down and look around nervously. So many families are sitting together nicely. They are worried about how Johnny will behave.

Service starts with music. Mr. and Mrs. Doe look around the sanctuary. All the children are participating in the music. The older ones are following along and singing. The younger ones are standing nicely, some are clapping along. Johnny does OK and even tries to sing a familiar song.

During the sermon, Johnny gets wiggly and loud. Rather than disrupt service, Mr. Doe takes him out into the hallway and Mrs. Doe remains for the sermon. She looks around the sanctuary. A little toddler drops her doll and the teenager behind her picks it up and hands it back with a smile. A young girl of about 7 is trying to follow along in her Bible with the help of her father. A preschooler whispers a bit too loudly, "mom, I gotta go potty." Mom gets up to take him while the elderly couple sitting next to them move over to help with the other children until she gets back.

After service, in fellowship hall, Mrs. Doe tells her husband what she witnessed. While they sip coffee, they watch the children play quietly and listen to some of the talk going on around them.

Mom 1:	Only 3 more weeks until school starts. I'm looking forward to it. We've decided to take the kids out of regular school and homeschool them this year.
Mom 2:	Good for you. We've been homeschooling right from the start and we really enjoy it.
Mom 1:	I am a bit nervous about whether I can handle it. Teaching seems like such a big job.
Mom 2:	It is a big responsibility, but I've found it isn't half as difficult as I thought, and I really like getting to know my children so well.

Finally, a man approaches the Does and invites them to attend Bible study at his home that evening.

Mr. Doe:	Oh, we couldn't. We don't really have anyone to watch Johnny.
Man:	No problem. We bring our kids with us. They enjoy the fellowship time and participate in the study, too.
Mrs. Doe:	It sounds nice, but I don't think we could count on Johnny to behave that well. He doesn't like to sit still and I wouldn't want to disrupt things.
Man:	Don't worry about it. We've all gone through the training period with our children. No one will be upset. There are plenty of people who can help out. Bible study starts at seven. Hope you can make it.

As Mr. and Mrs. Doe are leaving they chat.

Mrs. Doe:	You know, I wasn't too sure about this church thing, but I was rather comfortable here.
Mr. Doe:	Me, too. These Christians aren't so bad, but they sure are different. I like what they've got. I think this is what we've been looking for.

Conclusion God has put us in families and it's time for the church to take seriously the building up of our families. No longer should the world witness Christian families falling apart. It's time to make some drastic changes in our attitudes toward our children. We must put aside our selfishness, and embrace our children the way God wants us to. Malachi 4:5-6 reads:

Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet

Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.

And he will turn

The hearts of the fathers to the children,

And the hearts of the children to their fathers,

Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.

We need to turn our hearts back to our children and win the hearts of our children back to us. What better place to begin than within the body of Christ? What better way than following the Biblical mandate to worship and study as united families? Parents, I urge you, if your church is offering, even pushing, their children's programs refrain from using them. Leadership, I urge you to realign the priorities in your church and teach the congregation to come together as families. The responsibility lies with us. What do you want the world to see when they look at the body of Christ?


	Unity of the Family, Introduction
	Links to related articles