The Journey 89: Transformation in my family life

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Read: 1 Samuel 1, 2
Key Bible Verse:
“ O Lord almighty if you will look upon your servants misery and remember me and not forget your servant, but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life….”[ 1 Samuel 1: 11]

“Casting Crowns”. They finally came to Philly and performed at the awesome Liacouras centre, in the Temple University Campus. It was a dream come  true for me because all of their songs has been a tremendous influence in my life and these were  the songs that were used for praise and worship sessions even in some of the church’s in India. Each song that the Mathew West, Ross Taylor and Casting Crowns sang were wonderful. The songs like “Jesus Friend of Sinners”, “ Praise you in the Storm”, “Voice of Truth”, “East to the West”, “Just another day”, Glorious day” was all awesome and wonderful to hear and also see the group performing live. But the moment of sheer joy and excitement was when casting crowns sang the song “ Whom Am I”. I don't have words to describe the feeling as they sang that song. I went delirious. This was one song that had touched me and also lot of  my friends. But along with the songs, what made my day unique was the fantastic feeling of being in a stadium and experiencing the joy of being a part of wider Christian fellowship and experiencing common bond with so many known and unknown believers because of our relationship with Jesus Christ. Another aspect both Mathew West, Ross Taylor and Mark of Casting Crowns stressed was the need for the people to be a source of influence in the community. In a world where people are driven by selfish and individual pursuits, God calls us to be a source of influence for Him. But where will this source of influence come about, and who will spark in an individual the desire to live for Jesus, as the best option in life?. I believe it is here the importance of nurturing patterns  in the family comes into the picture.
            This week we are meditating on the theme “ Transformation in our family life” through the family life of Elkanah and Hannah, which is mentioned in the book of 1 Samuel 1. Hannah in her crisis, comes to God’s presence and then makes a decision to dedicate her child to the Lord, if the Lord would bless her with one. This was an honest attempt to pass faith to the next generation and that is what we meditated yesterday-Inter generational faith. Hannah as she decides to dedicate her unborn child to the Lord is also showing another concept in here act of dedication. Here is  a mother who wants the child to be used by God so that he becomes a source of influence for others, and all his pursuits in life are to be directed by God. Later in the history of Israel,  we can see how Samuel becomes a prophet for the Lord and the way he becomes a influencing and also a correcting force in the life of so many people. I think this is one of the truths that directs my ministry too and I praise God for that. In a world where every individual is concerned only about their own selfish pursuits, God is asking us to be a source of influence for him. It is here that we as parents and faith teachers instill in our children and the next generation, how to live for God and be a source of influence for Him in the context that we live. God designed that our family will grow in this mission that He has given us.
Can our families be a source of influence, so that we all live for Him and also influence others to live for Him?.
 
Let us Pray: Dear God we thank you for the gift of family and the relationship that we have in our family. You desire that as we live in our family, we become a source of influence through the faith nurturing that we receive through our family. Help us to be a part of this great plan. Amen

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