David Sulcer
Passage: 1 Timothy 5:1-8
Prayer: Father, often the church feels like a blended family more than a nuclear family. We struggle to get along and to mesh together. It is like a bunch of step-children who have been forced to live in the same house against their wills! And yet, as Christians, born from the same blood of the Lamb, and given the same name of the Father we are called to be the family of God. We are called to love one another, encourage one another, and accept one another. We are called to operate with the Spirit of family, with leaders who adopt certain values that ensure that family bond. This means when power is called upon to be exerted, gentleness and wisdom must be the means by which it is enforced. Leaders must see the older men as fathers, the younger men as brothers, the older women as mothers and the younger women as sisters. It also means that purity in relationships is highly respected and ensured, so that scrupulous care is exercised with regards to sexuality, knowing that scandal and heartbreak could poison the whole congregation. Finally it means that the proper tension between welfare and personal responsibility must be maintained. Father, your self-giving love, displayed through Jesus Christ, was never meant to make us self-indulgent or irresponsible. We are called to do our part and provide for our own and yet we are called to meet real human need as it is presented to us, like family members who care for their own. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.
Fresh Air 