True Family

My true brother and sister and mother are those who do what God wants. — Mark 3:35

Does Jesus have anything to say about dealing with difficult relatives? Is there an example of Jesus bringing peace to a painful family? Yes, there is.

His own.

It may surprise you to know that Jesus had a family at all! You may not be aware that Jesus had brothers and sisters. He did. Quoting Jesus’ hometown critics, Mark wrote,

[Jesus] is just the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And His sisters are here with us. — Mark 6:3

And it may surprise you to know that His family was less than perfect. They were. If your family doesn’t appreciate you, take heart, neither did Jesus’…

[Yet] He didn’t try to control His family’s behavior, nor did He let their behavior control His. He didn’t demand that they agree with Him. He didn’t sulk when they insulted Him. He didn’t make it His mission to try to please them.

~ He Still Moves Stones

A Heavenly Affirmation

I will be your father. — 2 Corinthians 6:18

Each of us has a fantasy that our family will be like the Waltons, an expectation that our dearest friends will be our next of kin. Jesus didn’t have that expectation. Look how he defined His family:

My true brother and sister and mother are those who do what God wants. — Mark 3:35

When Jesus’ brothers didn’t share His convictions, He didn’t try to force them. He recognized that His spiritual family could provide what His physical family didn’t.

We can’t control the way our family responds to us. When it comes to the behavior of others toward us, our hands are tied. We have to move beyond the naive expectation that if we do good, people will treat us right. The fact is they may and they may not — we cannot control how people respond to us.

Let God give you what your family doesn’t.

If your earthly father doesn’t affirm you, then let your heavenly Father take his place.

[And] don’t lose heart. God still changes families.

~ He Still Moves Stones

Excerpted with permission from Grace for the Moment by Max Lucado, copyright Max Lucado.

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Your Turn

It’s impossible to escape family problems, right? Every family has at least one difficult person (hopefully it’s not us, but maybe so!) and at least one conflict that has caused painful division. Isn’t it a comfort that Jesus personally experienced rejection by family, misunderstanding, and division, which means He understands what you and I are going through as well? Come share your thoughts with us on our blog. We would love to hear from you about letting God the Father fill those empty and hurting spaces where our family cannot. ~ Laurie McClure, Faith.Full