Hi everyone,

As you know, my wife and I have 3 kids within 5 years. While I sometimes wish they were a bit closer in age, it is what it is. I honestly don’t know how different they would be if they were closer in age though. Like, sometimes when my daughter is acting super goofy, I will comment on how weird she is being. Her retort would sometimes be, “that’s what you get for raising me like this!” (see what I mean about her being weird?)

But the thing is, I don’t think I raised them to be weird. I wanted to instill in them a sense of compassion, humility, and empathy, but not weirdness. And honestly our other two aren’t as weird, but we raised them as well. Like, they are just a max of 3 years apart but they are wildly different. So it comes down to that age-old “nature vs nurture” debate.

Whatever side you land on, I don’t know if I would have it any other way with our kids. It’s a great mix of goofiness, smarts, and toughness. They can help each other up when they’re down. They fill in the gaps where they’re lacking. And they can always rely on their parents (at least to pay for stuff).

Y’know, it’s almost like we’re a family. Gosh, I guess we are.

Here are the readings for next week:
Exodus 19:2-8a
Psalm 100
Romans 5:1-8
Matthew 9:35—10:8
and a video of them being read:

Not all of us have relationships like what I described above. Not all of us are close with our families (of origin or otherwise). Not all of us have goofy kids. But as we learn in these texts, we all have someone who gathers us together, watches over us, and equips us to serve, to do, and to be. We all are called to be part of this community, this church, this body of Christ of varying different relationships. We are all brought together as this mishmash of diverse and unique individuals that just work together.

What a gift it is to be part of this larger story of God’s people. What a blessing it is to know that we belong to something bigger than ourselves. What a joy it is to know that we are welcomed into this family.

Sure, we might be wildly different. We might not always see eye-to-eye. We might not even like each other. But we’re still in this together, we’re still part of the same human race, we’re still included in the promise and inheritance of God.

Thanks be to God! Have a great week, everyone!