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Two Worlds, One Family

After reading that title, are you singing the Phil Collins song from Tarzan? I was. In my head. During prayer meeting. The theme for prayer that evening was the 3rd commandment; you shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. We bowed our heads and began praying around the circle. My dear friend sat beside me and prayed for her children and the children of our church. She prayed that they would never a know a day not loving the name of the Lord, that they would cling to Him and honour Him all the days of their lives. I went next. I prayed for my coworkers, so many of them living far, far from God, so many enslaved to sin. I prayed that they would know Jesus, honestly ask Him to forgive them, and then live the rest of their lives loving His name and bringing that Name glory.

The same desire spurred our prayers, but the places we dwell in had a huge effect on how we prayed.


And that's when that song from my childhood came to mind. The truth is that we are one family, my friend and I and all other believers. Everyone who has asked Jesus to forgive their sins, turned away from their sin, and surrendered their lives to God, every person living that reality is part of the same family. God is our Father. We are His adopted children. We are family. 

But we are not all serving Him in the same places. We are in different worlds. 

My friend is serving our Father by homeschooling her children and leading a local mom and tots group. I am serving our Father by going to work and answering questions about listening to mediums and reincarnation . We inhabit very different worlds throughout the week, but we are serving the same Father and He has wisely stationed us at unique posts. 


This is something that I always knew, but I definitely needed a reminder. To be frank, sometimes it's very had being in a world that is so different from my Christian friends. And sometimes I get bitter about it, bitter that they don't understand. The vast majority of them are married with kids--plus most in that category are also pregnant at the moment--and even among my single friends I have very few who live alone and work full time in order to pay bills. Sometimes the world I live in feels very far removed from the world everyone else lives in. 

But God reminded me that that's okay. That's exactly how He designed things. He wants me to be His light in this world full of darkness, and He wants them to be a light in their own places. Even with all the differences, we are still one family. We have so much in common. We are forgiven, redeemed, adopted, becoming more like Jesus. We have the same Father, are advancing the same Kingdom, living for the same goal--to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. 

What I'm Reading Lately 

    • Just finished The Hobbit by Tolkien for book club. 
    • On my cousin's recommendation, I started Crow Lake by Mary Lawson 
    • Candide by Voltaire is my school read this week. It is both hilarious and awful. 
    • Before bed I'm slowly making my way through Feminine Threads by Diana Lynn Severance. It's about Christian women throughout church history

What I'm Enjoying Lately

    • My sister and her family are visiting Ontario for a month (they're from Costa Rica) so it's been really nice to visit with them.
    • The cooler weather, the beautiful trees, and wearing long pants and sweaters 
    • I moved my desk and fish tank so that they're now neighbours, and it's been nice to see the fish while I do computer work. 
    • Last weekend I went to the Verity Conference in Northern Michigan with my cousin. We had a wonderful time being encouraged to share the gospel with those around us. 
    • Brain Sauve's album Hearth Songs, especially "Old Neptune, He's Roaring."
                                                    


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