Healthy-er Roles

WELCOME

Pastor Chris Paavola:

Good morning, everybody. Good to be with you guys. My name’s Chris Pavala and yeah, we are in a series all about families and all that kind of stuff. And we just though, man, there’s so many TV shows that kind of illustrate the things that we’re talking about. So we thought we’d do this to get our heads wrapped around this idea of family. But yeah, thanks for being here. It’s good to be with you guys. In World War II, they issued soldiers helmets, as you would anticipate. And so, all these soldiers are wearing helmets. And that is the primary role and primary function of a helmet. But when they’d be in times of war, they’d have to get creative to find because they just didn’t have a lot of resources. Like if they had to cook food and they didn’t have a stove and they were on the front lines and they couldn’t get off the lines, they would use their helmets, they’d turn them over and cook and put light a fire and then they would use their helmets that they would heat up these metal helmets and cook with them.

And the army told them to stop doing that actually because when you heated up the helmet, it would compromise the integrity of the helmet actually. But hey, had to eat and you can’t eat raw food sometimes. Then another thing that they started using the helmet for is if they didn’t have an entrenching tool and they’re on the front lines and they needed to dig a foxhole or a trench. They would use their helmets. It’s like a shovel and they’d be digging with their shovel in the dirt trying to. And it makes sense, that’s what you’re doing. The government actually told them to stop doing this as well because they would get dirt in the helmet and then that not only would they cook with dirty water, but then also they would shave and wash their face with their helmets. And so, if you had cuts in your hand or cuts in your face and then you’re washing with dirty water, you would get infection and the governments and the army’s like, “Hey, stop doing that.” But you got to do it sometimes.

Desperate times call from desperate measures. There’s an ideal use of a helmet and then there’s a less- than-ideal use. But sometimes you don’t have a stove, you don’t have a shovel, you don’t have a sink and you got to get creative. But there’s an original role, an intended role, and then because of situations, we got to get creative in a less-than-ideal role for things.

SERIES

And that’s what we’re going to be talking about today as we continue this series that we’re in called Healthier Family. And we’re going to be talking all about roles today because the reason we’re doing this series, by the way, this applies to everybody. It doesn’t matter if you’re single and looking to have a family someday or if you currently have a family, if you’re kind of a Brady Bunch family or you’re an empty nester and you have grandkids, all of the principles that we’re talking about matter.

CONFLICT         ATTITUDES       ROLES  FOUNDATION

And I think a Christian family is different. And there are really four ways that I think Christian families are different. We have a different foundation. That was what we talked about last week. Just like you can make respect, trust, honesty, communication. You can make family the foundation of your family, whatever it might be. You can make a lot of things the foundation of your family. It’s what we talked about last week, but they all depend on you and you’re imperfect. And so last week we talked about what a perfect and permanent foundation for your family would look like. And for a Christian, we would say that God’s word is perfect and permanent. And when that’s the foundation of a family, not just in agreement and in theory, but when the entire family is resting and touching God’s word and interacting with it, man, it changes a home. It changes a home.

THIS WEEK

And then this week we’re going to talk about roles and then week three we’re going to talk about attitudes and conflict. And again, these are things that I think Christians do a little bit differently and it changes the health of our family. So today we’re going to be talking about roles. And like I said, there’s an intended role and then sometimes you got to dig a hole with the helmets. There’s a less-than-ideal situation and you got to get creative, but we’re going to talk all about roles today. And so, as we talk about roles and the role of husbands and wives and children, all that kind of stuff, this is a hot topic. I get it. These are charged ideas. This topic, touches on a whole lot of other things that are cultural right now and this will seem in some ways counter-cultural or a little archaic and as we talk about a traditional understanding and whatnot.

And so first of all, as I speak, listen charitably. If I misspeak, assume the best in me or assume that I’m just being confusing and then reach out to me and let’s talk about it because I don’t mean to unintentionally offend, but I think my job as I speak is I’m a messenger. I don’t make the news; I just deliver it. And so, my job is just telling you what God’s word says, what scripture says about this thing. Let God speak for himself so you can make a conclusion for yourself. And as you listen, you’re going to hear a whole lot of things and you got to kind of connect the dots of what this means for your family and maybe where you agree with me or disagree with me, but I want to be honest and sincere. So that is my heart. And I think even if you are not sold out in this Jesus thing, if you’re still looking into this, even if you don’t agree fully with some of the things that we talk about today, I think that you’re going to go, oh wow, well that’s helpful and it’s going to make you, at the very least today, you will think about the role that you are supposed to fill in your homes and you will have a good conversation as you leave here and driving in the car or sitting at lunch or whatever it might be.

You’re going to have a good conversation as a family, I think, because you’re going to talk through this thing that we don’t really talk about very often, the idea of roles and what we should do. So, listen charitably. I’ll speak as charitably as I can, but I’ll speak honest. But I think it’s important that we talk about this because I think these five areas change the way we make Christian families different.

THE BETTER YOUR HOME FOLLOW GOD’S ORDER,

THE HEALTHY-ER YOUR FAMILY WILL BE

And I do believe if we embrace God’s order for a family, the better your home follows God’s order, the healthier your family will be. And that’s my hope for you today.

HEALTHY-ER ORIGIN

So anytime we talk about God’s order for a family or anything like that, we have to go back to the origin, the original family. And that’s why we had the reading that we did from Genesis.

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

                                                                                                                                                Genisis 2

 And I want to point out a few things in there because when we look at this reading, not only do we see this account of God making Adam and Eve, but we start to see the roles of husbands and wives and then those roles relate to each other.

And we’ll get into that a little bit later on in the message. But first let’s point out some of the obvious things that are going on in this created order in the beginning. This is God’s idea. So, he looks at, it says in Genesis two, when we have the Genesis of family, it says in verse 18, “The Lord God said it is not good for the man to be alone.” It’s not good. He’s alone and he could live forever like this, but it’s not good. I’ve made him for relationship. He’s a God in relationship with himself and he makes man to be in relationship with him, but he wants man to experience relationship with other mankind, with the rest of mankind. And so, he says, “I will make,” this is his idea. “I got it. “I’m will make a helper suitable for him. ” And they’re right in the beginning as we see a role starting to merge. We’ve got man and then woman is made as a helper. I’ll speak on that in just a second.

22 Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

           Genesis 2

It says,” Then the Lord God,” he puts Adam to sleep and he “made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man and he brought her to the man.”

“Just as a quick side note, I think every woman deep in the heart of every woman is a longing to be cherished and longing to be valued. And because it’s how she was made, you’re a gift and you should be treated like a gift. And maybe that’s old fashioned or whatever. I just think that women should be won over and wooed because you are a gift and a treasure. And if you aren’t treasured, it’s not how God made you.

23 The man said, “This is the bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh, she shall be called woman, for she was taken out of man.” 24 That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

           Genesis 2

So, he brings her to Adam and the man said,” This is the bone of my bones, flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman, for she was taken out of the man.” It’s actually the word means from the man. So, woman means from the man. “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife and they become one flesh.” So, you can see this is beyond X, X, X, Y chromosomes. In architecture back in the early 1900s, there was a phrase that started to emerge called form follows function. You can look at the form of a building and it follows the function that it’s needed for. And you can see form follows function here. There is a uniting, their bodies are different and they come together for a purpose and then they have different roles that follow. Adam gives, by the way, God gives Adam authority to name all the animals of creation and he gives Adam authority to name his wife, woman, right?

And he is giving her a child and she nurtures and cares for a child. And for nine months, she’s going to carry this child and then cradle it in his arms and it’s going to nurse at her breast as she nurtures it. And you start to see form follows function. There’s this intended design going on between man and woman and husband and wife that God has in mind. And you start to see roles emerging purely from the function that they are made for. So for Adam, you see that he’s a director. He’s naming the animals. He’s providing a sense of order to creation. Leader is another word we would use. He’s a provider, not just that he’s providing resources like hunter gatherer kind of stuff, but after the fall, we’ll see that that provider means he’s providing a safe environment. He protects the home. This is the function that follows the form.

And then he’s a giver as well. He gives her name. He gives her a child. This is what he does. This is his role. And it’s distinct from her role, Eve’s role. She’s a helper. She’s made to support, help him. She’s a bearer. She bears the child and she is the caretaker. And these are different roles. And in Adam and Eve, when we see these different roles, we also see the roles of husbands and wives. As God designed them, form follows function. Does this mean men can’t be caretakers? Of course not. Does this mean that women don’t direct in certain areas? Of course not. But it’s the primary use, the primary function. You can dig a hole with a helmet. You can cook a meal with a helmet inside of a helmet, but the primary function of a helmet is to protect. And this is the primary function of husband and wives as we see it in the genesis, in the origin of family.

Now, this is the order, the role, but in order to be orderly in a home, it’s also these roles relate to each other.

ROLES OF A HEALTHY FAMILY

ADAM: DIRECTOR, GIVER, PROVIDER

EVE: HELPER, CARETAKER, BEARER

HEALTHY-ER ORDER: WIVES

And this is what the Apostle Paul expounds on and I think we need to spend the majority of our time because the Apostle Paul writes about family. Don’t miss this, my friends. He is writing with this framework in mind. He has the framework of the book of Genesis in his mind. He has this understanding of form, following function and intended design and created order. And this is when he writes these words, he’s about to write, this is the framework he’s operating inside of.

21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

                                                                                                                                                 Ephesians 5

And he begins Ephesians chapter five, he’s writing to a smattering of families, meeting in a living room, in a church, in a place called Ephesus. And he’s like, “Okay, you guys, here’s how you relate to each other as a family. “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” So, you guys submit to each other. Submit to each other and you guys submit to each other. You guys submit to each other out of, notice, reverence for Christ, out of submission to him. He’s Lord. So out of honor and submission to Christ, you submit to each other. We just continue the submission to one another out of reverence for Jesus. I was talking to a friend this week and I was like it’s almost like a cheat code. When you’re in a Christian marriage, I think it’s a cheat code like up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right BA start, you get 300 lives. It’s just like you can make so many mistakes. It’s just such a head start when Jesus is present and active in a home. It’s a hack. It’s almost not fair. It’s not just that Jesus is acknowledged and we all kind of know his name.

No, I mean, when a family truly, when every family member is interacting with Jesus, it is a game changer. Last week when I gave you the challenge to read God’s word together, not just acknowledge that it’s important, but for your family to sit around and read the word together, it’s a game changer. Thank you for doing it. Your family is healthier for having done that. And when Jesus is interacting with everybody in the family and everybody’s submitting to him, man, a family flourishes. It’s a hack. And so, he’s saying in the home, all of you submit to one another out of reference for Christ. And then he expounds of what submitting to Christ and submitting to one another looks like for each role in the family, husbands, wives, and children. Now, as I read these next words, I know these are like, wow, especially if you’ve ever heard them before, but I want to remind you that what he’s writing about women and what he’s writing about wives, these are scandalous words to the other extreme.

22 Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the Church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

                                                                                                                                           Ephesians 5

These words are written in a culture where women were property. They couldn’t vote. They didn’t have a voice in a court of law. Women were objectified and treated so lower class in this society. And Paul writes these words that raises them up and esteems them and values them. So as offensive as these words might be to you, if you’ve never heard them before, recognize how shocking and counter-cultural these words are. Paul saying women matter. He writes these words in verse 22. So, wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord, for the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ is the head of the church, his body of which he is the savior. Now, as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.” Okay.

Let me point out a couple things. Here’s what it’s not saying.

First thing, it’s not saying that men are more valuable than women. It’s actually saying women are just as valuable as men.

Second thing, this is not instructions for men and women in society. This is instructions for husbands and wives. So, women do not have to submit to men in all areas of life. No, this is order for a home. Don’t miss this.

Third is there is this sense of, when we read this, we hear domineering. A moment ago, I said submit to Christ, and I didn’t feel anyone in the room wins. No one was like, ooh, because it’s Jesus.

Why is it easier to submit to Jesus? Why? Well, he’s Jesus. You know he loves you. You know he has your best interest at heart. You know he’s going to defend and protect and care for you. You know this. It’s Jesus. And so, if there’s a struggle or a ooh of submitting to a husband that says something about the way husbands are treating their wives, doesn’t it? We’ll get to that a little bit more later on. But the point that’s being made is women are valuable. Wives and husbands, this is your relationship with each other and there’s an order to this. If you don’t like the word submit, okay, try this word on for size. Follow leadership.

You follow a lot of leaders. You do. You have a boss. You follow their leadership and in doing so, you submit to their authority even when you disagree with their decision. Doesn’t matter if it’s a girl boss or a boy boss, doesn’t matter. Or elected officials. Paul later on will talk about submitting to governing authorities. We like when we can elect our governing authorities, we like that idea, but your governing authorities don’t always make decisions you agree with, right? And yet you have to follow their leadership. You have to submit. Maybe the word submit isn’t an archaic idea. Maybe it feels like an archaic word. Just food for though. You have to process that about how you’re reacting to these words. Now, as hard as you think this is, speaking of the domineering thing and the way men and husbands should demonstrate Jesus, as hard as this looks for women to do, he’s going to up the ante for men because leaders are held to a higher standard.

HEALTHY-ER ORDER: HUSBANDS

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.

       Ephesians 5

25 And you husbands, show the same kind of love to your wives as Christ showed to the church when he died for her.

                                                                                                      Ephesians 5:25 (NLT)

So, for husbands, he writes this. Husbands, as you submit to your family, here’s how you submit to Christ. “Husbands love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” Wait, what? One translation says die for your family. Lay down your life. This is what it means to be a leader. Just like Jesus died for the church, husbands, die for your families. When it goes bump in the night, you go check it out. When there’s a spider, you kill it.

When there’s a fire, women and children first, you leave last. Die for your families. You’re the provider. You provide a safe place for them to flourish. You’re their protector, their defender. That’s what it means to be a leader. Lay down your life for your family. Die daily. And then because he knows how abrasive these words are, he expounds on it and he spends a little bit more time on husbands than he does wives because he realizes that this is asking a whole lot more.

26 To make her holy, cleansing her by washing with water through the word. 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church

       Ephesians 5

And he says, “Christ died for the church “to make her holy by cleansing her by the washroom with water through the word and to present her to himself as a radiant church without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.” Okay, Paul, where are you going? Verse 28, “In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies.” What’s he referring to?

The Garden of Eden. Eve was made from Adam’s body. Eve is a member of Adam’s body. The church is a member of Christ’s body. So, the wife, when they come together as one flesh, it’s not just like we’re just describing it poetically. There is a union so much that you now are one flesh, one body, husband and wife. And so the way you treat your wife is the way you treat yourself. You neglect your wife, you abuse your wife, you’re harming yourself. You care for your wife you’re caring for yourself.

It’s poetic. It’s powerful. It’s a brand new though for so many of us. And he continues, “After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body just as Christ does the church.” Yeah, that’s what he does.

30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.

       Ephesians 5

Verse 30, “We are members of his body for this reason.” And he’s quoting Genesis again, “A man will leave the father and mother and be united to his wife and the two will become” not just poetically in some supernatural, spiritual and physical way that we don’t understand. The two become “one flesh.” Form follows function.” This is what happens.

32 This is a profound mystery-but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

       Ephesians 5

This is a profound mystery. I get it. This is hard. And if you’ve never through about this, you should take time to wrestle with this. This is profound, this mystery that we don’t fully understand, but I’m talking about Christ in the church.

“However, each of you must also love his wife as he loves himself and the wife must respect her husband.”  This, is good order. Let me tell you what this is also not saying, men.

This is not saying that just because you have the title that you are operating in the full authority and in the full title of which you were given. We’ve all seen bad leaders who are leaders in name only and they’re negligent in their duties.

It’s not a leader. Sure it is a name, but not in reality, not in practice. And what happens in that leadership vacuum? It doesn’t stay empty for long. It doesn’t matter in any industry, any field, any type of situation, when there is a leadership vacuum, someone or something will step into that role and quickly. It’s Lord of the Flies. Someone’s going to take control. And husbands, when you neglect leadership in your home, when you pull back, when you’re disengaged, most often this falls on the wives and they’re digging a hole with a helmet, cooking dinner in a helmet.

We got to lean into this role. We got to lean into this role. This also kind of gets to. You ever been around a leader who just always makes an appeal to their title of why you should do something? Do this because I said so. This is my house, my rules. I’m in charge around here. You can do that. And sometimes there’s emergency situations where you got to do that, but it’s not good leadership. It shouldn’t be the default. And husbands, don’t miss what Paul is saying. As you lead and as you demonstrate Jesus to your family, that’s exactly what you are doing. You’re giving your families a picture of how Christ loved the world when you serve and die for and lay down your life for your family as you lead.

So much more I could say. And I know I’m touching on other things that are topics worth exploring, but I want to stay limited to this idea of roles because we’ve got some applications to make, but before we do that, we’ve got one other role and relationship with those roles to touch on. What is missing? Who’s else in the house? Kids, right?

HEALTHY-ER ORDER: CHILDREN

That’s where Paul goes next. So, as we continue this conversation, what it means is submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. He says this for kids.

1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother”-which is the first commandment with a promise-3”so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on earth.”

       Ephesians 6

“Children, obey your parents and the Lord for this is right. Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with a promise so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on earth.”  So yeah, kids, your role in this, honor mom and dad. Honor them. This means don’t make fun of dad.

It’s easy to pick on leaders. Watch how many commercials and TV shows make the dad the bumbling idiot. It’s easy. Not you. Don’t do that. It’s also, it’s easy to argue with mom who’s always fixing and caretaking and doing the. It’s easy to argue with mom. Don’t do it. Honor them as you submit to Christ yourself. Honor them. There’s no parent in the room here who has a kid down the hall at kids ministry who is upset that kids are learning to honor their father and mother. Everyone’s like, “Yeah, you tell them.” Right? This will be a good afternoon.

HEALTHY-ER ORDER: YOUR FAMILY

But it’s the same thing, you guys. It’s honor, respect, it’s submission and submitting to Christ. It’s what it is. And I like what Paul quotes here. When God gives the 10 commandments, he’s like, “Do this, don’t do this, do this, don’t do this.” But when he gets to honor your father and mother, he attaches a promise. When you do this, when you honor your father and mother, it may go well with you, that you may enjoy a long life on earth. When you honor your father and mother, this is a command that it may go well with you within your homes. And this is really encapsulating all of these rules, all of this order, all of these relationships. When you do this, God gives this command, this instruction, this order so that it may go well with you. These commands are for you, for your good, not your harm, not against you.

This is for you that you may flourish. This is how I’ve designed you. Do this and you will be healthier.

And that kind of then leads to, in my opinion, two questions that need to be asked. And as I’ve been talking here, I know I’m touching a sore spot in some families, broken family, divorced, single parent, Brady Bunch, something, right? I know this is complicated. I know that some of you are cooking with a helmet. I get it. Desperate times, desperate measures, you’re stepping in and trying to fill a role. I get it. I get it. But these are two questions I want you to ask.

WHAT ROLES ARE MISSING FROM MY FAMILY

First, what role is missing from my family? This is especially true if you’re a single parent. If you’re a single dad, recognize that there is a nurturing and caring that is just. It’s not your gift. It’s second nature. It’s a little bit harder for you. You have to be a little bit more intentional and it’s like cooking with a helmet, right?

So, if you are a single dad and I’m in a home and I kind of more of a disciplinarian than I am like a nurturer and care, reach out, find someone to help fill that role, a mom, a sister, somebody to step in and provide that role model for your children. Just recognize that you need someone in the home or someone that has a consistent relationship with your children to nurture them. And the flip side is also true, single ladies, all the single ladies.

You also have a role, right? By nature, you’re a caretaker, you’re a nurturer, but there’s leadership and you’ve had to protect your family and I’m sorry for that. You’ve had to defend your family and you’ve been called to a higher task that it’s not second nature to you and you’re doing great, but you too reach out. Reach out to a brother, a grandpa, an uncle, somebody who can step in and be that role model for your children to demonstrate what leadership looks like, making hard decisions look like, defending and protecting. Find that. Find that. In my house, the phrase that I use and the phrase that we use because we find it helpful, and maybe this is helpful for you or not, but I lead the family, my wife leads the home. We roll. I lead the family and my wife leads the home.

I forgot to say this, so just let me press pause on this before we get to the second question. Let me just say this. I could absolutely 100% go, “Hey, you know what? We’re going to switch our laundry detergent.” I could. I shouldn’t. She has researched this. She has an idea of why we use the. There are allergies to consider. There’s cost to consider. There’s fragrance to consider. All of these things. She has thought throughout and I could, but that’s an overstepping of my leadership. I’m not trusting her to lead in the areas where she should.

The best decisions I think in a home are where we talk about it together and we weigh the pros and cons. But ultimately, if it’s a decision about the family, where we’re going to live or what our kids are going to do or what our kids are going to watch, I mean, ultimately, ultimately, that’s me leading a family when I make that decision. We have this conversation, but ultimately, it’s me. I’ve got to own that. In the Garden of Eden, when Adam and Eve both ate the fruit, Eve was responsible, but Adam was accountable. There’s a difference. One day, I believe I will have to give an account to God for how I led my family and how I may have endangered them. I’m going to have to answer for that. My wife and I are both responsible, but at the end of the day, the buck stops.

I’m accountable and I have to give an answer for how I lead my family. Husbands, the same is true for you. All right, so that gets to then the second question that I think is a good question. How can I lean into my role?

HOW DO I NEED TO LEAN INTO MY ROLE

If this is your role, the primary intended ideal situation, your role is this. How can you lean into this? I get that it gets hard. You get busy, life, you’re tired, you’re overworked, all that stuff. I get it. But this is a call and a reminder to lean into what you are designed to do, what you are designed to do. How can you lean in? I mean, men, it’s easy to check out. I get it. I get it. But lean in. Wives, as he leans into this leadership role, not into dominating, but as he makes himself present, support him, respect him, honor him, let him lead. Then women on the flip side, as you lean into your role like, okay, you know what? It’s constant. I’m tired of making lunches and I forget to snuggle with my kids when I’m reading books with them or whatever.

(32:54):

You get a little callous because you’re tired or you’re angry or whatever. Lean into caretaker, lean into nurture, lean into that. Husbands, the same is true. As she does that, recognize her, compliment her, see her when she’s doing that. Say,” Honey, I appreciate the way you, and thank you for. “That’s good leadership. Recognize when people are doing their job and doing it well. I said in the beginning. Oh yeah, and kids. Yeah, lean into your role. How can you honor mom and dad a little bit more than you are? When your family does this, I so to my core believe this. It’s what I said in the beginning, but I’m going to repeat it now so it sticks. The better your family follows God’s order, the healthier your family will be. I know your family’s not perfect, mine’s not perfect, but when we lean into this, when we take ownership of this, when we recognize the ideal and the design and the order in this and we step into it, I believe it will go well with you.

It will go well with you. I know there’s all sorts of what ifs and wait, how come and how do I. But in my situation, I’d love to talk to you about that. Send me an email, call me, whatever. I’d love to talk about that.

But I believe this to be true. Don’t forget the connection that Paul made when you do this. Don’t forget the connection Paul made.

THE BETTER YOUR HOME FOLLOWS GOD’S ORDER

THE HEALTHY-ER YOUR FAMILY WILL BE

When you do this, not only will your home be healthier and not only are you stepping into the original Genesis idea of a family, but when you do this, you demonstrate the love of God for the world. Your family will be a picture of Jesus to your kids, to your neighbors, and you’ll demonstrate the difference that is a Christian family. We’re going to pray for just a second and we’re going to pray the Lord’s prayer. I think it’s so interesting. We call him father and notice all the things he does as father and all the things we do as his children. Let’s pray.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, first of all, thank you for designing family the way you did. This brings up all sorts of questions and all sorts of what ifs, but first off, we just want to acknowledge your wisdom, your wisdom to design a family like this.

Help us to believe, Lord. Where we fall short of this, either by circumstance or by our own imperfections or whatever it might be, God, forgive us and help us that each one of our homes may be a picture of your family and a picture of Jesus to not only inside the walls, but outside the walls that everyone can see the difference Jesus makes in a home. I pray for the husbands listening right now, help them lead, help them protect, help them engage, show them their blind spots, for the wives in the room, help them follow, help them nurture for the children in the room, help them honor that it may go well with us and the world may see another picture of your love for us, Lord, a picture of Jesus.

Yeah, we close with a prayer that points back to your idea of a father and of children and the way we relate to each other as a family. As we pray together;

Our father who art in heaven,

Hollowed be thy name,

Thy kingdom come,

Thy will be done,

On earth as it is in heaven,

Give us this day our daily bread,

And forgive us our trespasses,

As we forgive those who trespass against us<

And lead us not into temptation,

But deliver us from evil,

For thine is the kingdom,

And the power,

And the glory,

Forever and ever,

Amen.