Fighting for Family

At MTC, we love the families God brings to us. We have such a beautiful array of families we get to pour into and do life with, and we are honored to be in the position that God has placed us in. We love you all no matter what your family looks like or what dissension exists within your clan, and our Heavenly Father loves you far more than we ever can. And that's pretty awesome. He is so good with His unwavering love.

Family. It is one of the strongest units in this life. It is an unbreakable bond. It means you love unconditionally and have each other's back no matter what. It means you forgive and forget. You laugh together, weep in each other's arms, carry each other's burdens, and do life together. We were designed to support each other, and it's amazing how we work together.

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.

[Proverbs 27:17]

Family is a beautiful thing. It is a tight-knit bond between blood relatives and non-blood kinship alike. Family comes in many different forms and forges out of various common experiences. Families root us, ground us, grow us up into the adults we will become. I believe it is our greatest environmental influence.

And the devil HATES it. He is doing all he can to destroy the family. He knows the impact family has on the individual, and he wants to twist, pervert, and destroy God's perfect design.

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

[1 Peter 5:8-9]

We are called to stand firm in our faith. We can trust in our Sovereign Father that He's got us. He is the One who brings us together, and He can (and will) hold us together. Every family - no matter who it consists of, what their financial status is, or what have you - every family will have turbulence. Individually we all go through struggles and trials in life, and the same is true for any family. There will be hard times. Like, REALLY hard times. But God wants to hear from you in the easy AND the hard times. He is ready to step in at a moment's notice, so cry out to Him in faith. Stand firm, and know that you're not alone in this. God is ever-present. Plus, there is a whole family of believers around the world facing the same or similar sufferings. Join together in fighting the devil. Fight for family. Be aware that he's lurking and that he craves to destroy the family unit, but don't be afraid of him. He has to flee when you tell him to get out. He can't stand as you call on Jesus to intercede for you and your loved ones.

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

[James 4:7]

I want to take a look back at the way our Creator formed the family to be. Our good, perfect, and loving Divine Designer instituted family and all that it is meant to be. So let's take a look at what He declared as good. This is not meant to shame anyone, but rather to encourage us wherever we are at in reminding us how beautifully and carefully God has designed everything, including marriage and the family unit.

The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”

Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.

But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

The man said,

“This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

[Genesis 2:18-24]

What God brings together, the devil loves to tear apart. By destroying Divine unity, the devil gains an upper hand in our hearts. So naturally the enemy will attack our deepest and most vulnerable relationships - marriages, parenthood, siblings, etc. But God can and will hold you together when you trust Him. God loves unity. The devil loves division. Stand firm in your faith, call out to God, and rest in His promises for your family!

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

[John 10:10]

God doesn't love unity "just because" or to make us feel like it's one more rule to follow. He loves unity because it is GOOD. It is something perfectly designed to bring us a more full life and help us to live with one another and love each other more deeply.

There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless— a miserable business! Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

[Ecclesiastes 4:8-12]

Take heart! Jesus is fighting for you. Jesus is fighting for your family. Stand together on the promise that what God holds together the devil cannot tear apart. 💞