Day 9, Sunday, November 24
Read:Psalm 68:1-10
God setteth the solitary in families: he bringeth out those which are bound with chains: but the rebellious dwell in a dry land. (v. 6)
Unfortunately, when you get a bunch of simultaneous saints and sinners together at a holiday meal, there is going to be squabbling along with the gobbling – and not from the turkey! We are often more polite with strangers than with our own family; maybe not the way we wish it was, but true nonetheless. There are more social filters in place when guests are involved; with family, a lot is taken for granted. We grow accustomed to interactions because we’ve had hundreds of them with that person.
God intends us to be unmasked; to be seen and known. Challenged perhaps, but deeply loved. God sets the solitary down in families so they learn what love really is. Anyone wounded in relationship can try to heal in isolation, but the minute they are surrounded by people, their healing is going to need some more healing.
If your family has a long way to go, don’t despair, just keep at it. Seek out healing for yourself and pre-think holiday gatherings. What is important to you? What is important to God, and to your relationship with God? How can you listen, and love, and still be faithful to what he has done in you? How can you draw in the lonely, help prisoners out of their chains, and even touch the rebellious, who live way, way out in a dry land?
As you pray, thank God for whatever family he’s given you. What a gift for lonely souls – and what a place to learn about love.
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