A Nugget from New Life Network
(by Dr. Larry Ollison)
Scripture for the Day (November 25, 2015)
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven (Matthew 5:16).
Over the years, I have counseled with thousands of people from all walks of life. From the poor to the rich, from the young to the old, regardless of their social standing, I have discovered that many people have problems with relatives at family reunions.
Uncle Bob, Sister June, Cousin Emma, and Aunt Thelma may be the nicest people in the world 364 days a year, but at the Jones’ family reunion, the fangs and claws come out and they become ruthless. It is true that there are many good, solid, wholesome families that enjoy getting together at the holiday season. If your family is like this, be thankful and count your blessings, because for many, the thought of getting together with family creates stress and pain. This should not be.
God loves families! After all, He created them. God’s plan for your family is peace and stability. Your family should be a place like an oasis. God did not intend for families to argue and fight. What causes family division? The answer is quite simple. God is not the author of confusion. God is not divisive and God does not promote division. The devil, on the other hand, seeks to divide, destroy, and disburse families.
If you are having problems with your family, I encourage you to follow these steps so that peace can be yours.
1) See your family the way God sees them. God sees them worthy of His Son’s death.
2) Be gracious in your speech, even when others are not gracious to you. In other words, do not allow anyone else’s pride, haughtiness, greed, or slander to get you agitated and influence your words. If the devil can get you to change what you say because of what others say, then he has won.
3) You must know that your life is not about you. Your life is about God and your family. If you always place Him and them first, then your relationships will be in the right perspective.
4) Have a good time no matter what. Choose to enjoy your family whether they enjoy you or not. After all, you only have one family and you’re stuck with it. So make the most of it.
5) Use common sense. If Uncle Harry goes ballistic when you mention politics, then avoid politics and don’t allow yourself to be drawn into a fruitless argument.
6) Lighten up. Don’t go to the reunion with a “spirit of heaviness and dread” upon you. Pray in the Spirit on your way to the reunion and allow the refreshing of the Holy Spirit to be upon you.
Follow these simple steps and family happiness can be yours.
But the fruit of the Spirit [the result of His presence within us] is love [unselfish concern for others], joy, [inner] peace, patience [not the ability to wait, but how we act while waiting], kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)
