Something God is talking about to me and to others at the moment is about being a part of a family, no longer an individual doing their own thing. Who is our family?We are part of a body, and this is something I have been encouraging a lot over the years that we are not individuals, that none of us have it all, we need each other. We are a body and all of us are different parts and without the other parts we are not complete. A hand needs an arm, a foot needs a leg and without it they totally useless and unable to function. We need each others giftings' and anointings' that God has given each one of us, in order to be a complete body, not lacking anything so that we can function as we are called to function, whole and complete.
We recently came back from a trip to Portugal and while I was there one of the many things God was showing me and reminding me of was who my family was and that was the people at home in NZ who loved me, who knew me, who understood me, who had journeyed with me over years, who I felt I could cry with and grow with, and a place where I could be totally 'me'. When I arrived home and went into our church family service on the Sunday I just started to cry as I needed to be able to cry and release some of what had happened overseas, even though it was a great time and God taught us so much, it was still hard at times and completely what I needed in order to go to the next place in God. And yet at the same time, the Lord showed me how much my NZ church family were my family, the safe place, the place where I could be 'me' and let down my guard so to speak.
Many of us are called to go into places that are not easy, that perhaps we might be called to go 'alone' in the going and it may seem like a 'front line war situation'. That 'front line' is whatever you are called to, whether it may be to your neighbour who is struggling with cancer and you are helping them carry the load, whether that is to another country, whether that is to your 'work place' where it is a 'war zone' just to be a christian and to stand in what you believe. It may be in a christian ministry situation say of 'Sozo', 'Healing Rooms', 'Youth Pastor', 'Worship leading', or 'Pastor'. 'We all have our 'areas' that the Lord has called us to take the front line in, it may simply (or not so simply as this can be the hardest place) be in our families as we continue to sow the love of God into a situation where abuse, physical, sexual, control, whatever it may be, but we all need a place of 'safety', of 'encouragement' to keep going in the places we are in and called to. Hence the need for the family of the body of the Christ to be that 'safe place' that 'haven', that 'time out' that we all need in order to go again out into the 'front line'.
If you believe you are called to be 'alone' in something that is fine, but I want to encourage you to make sure you can answer some questions;
Who is your family?
Do you know who is praying for you?
Do you have a place where you can cry on their shoulder?
Do you have a people who know you and encourage you to carry on in the call and vision on your life?
Who are the people that you come home to and rejoice with them of the testimonies to and ask questions on how to do things in the future?
Who are the people who can correct you, sharpen you, speak into your life that you will listen if you need correcting or discipling for your benefit and the benefit of who God sends you to?
If you can't answer some of these, then please start asking some questions to the Lord to reveal who these people are in your life, or perhaps how to go about becoming a part of a 'family' where these things happen, because He never wants us to be alone as a lone sheep is easily attacked. Jesus sent the disciples out 'two by two' and then they returned for more learning and teaching, but also sharing of what had happened, sharing the spoils of victory. That 'family' may be made up in different places, and come from different arenas and walks of life as you have journeyed along the way, but please ask the Lord who those people are in your life so you have an army with you every time you move forward into the front line. I was so blessed as we came home from Portugal to be able to come into my family that are around us in different ways, with a people who asked questions of how it went, of people saying what happened this day as I was woken to pray for you, or simply to give us a hug as I cried, or some money to go have a coffee just to encourage us.
Psalm 68:4-6
"Sing to God, Sing praise to his name.
Extol him who rides on the clouds,
His name is the Lord and rejoice before him.
A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,
is God in His holy dwelling.
God sets the lonely in families,
He leads forth the prisoners with singing;
but the rebellious live in a sun- sorched land."
Your family does not need to be a 'church' (building) family but it does need to be a family of faith in the Lord, a people who believe in Christ Jesus and want to walk in His way. May the Lord bless each one of you as He is blessing us, with amazing people of God who can be a blessing to you as you are a blessing to them!