My Family At The Table

My step-grandson came home from school with a paper a few weeks ago. The class was studying Black History Month and the topic was Martin Luther King Jr’s “I have a dream…” with space for each child to fill in their own dream for the world. At five, the dream is pretty simple. I have a dream for the world to “I sit with my family at the tabil (table)”.

I was touched by his words. Each of us should want to sit with our family at the table. With work, school, travel, and chores, we don’t do a good job of sitting at our own table. Evenings usually consist of eating in shifts around the kitchen island, but a formal sit down dinner? That is rare. We make no excuses, but we know our home is full of love – we are family.

Family is a choice.

I became a Christian seven years ago this month, March 2010. It has been quite an experience, one in which I divulge in my upcoming book, “Finding My Damascus”. It is the story of healing, love, and a life restructured. The further I traveled in my faith journey, the more God moved people in and out of my life. In some cases, I mourned the loss and in others, I was relieved.

In Matthew 12:46-50, Jesus’ mother and brothers were outside waiting to speak to Him while he was talking to a crowd of people. Jesus, in that moment, redefined who family was to Him. It was not necessarily flesh and blood, but those that followed God’s Will, His disciples.  Jesus became the alignment for family.

God’s definition of family does not rely on DNA or birth certificates . Each family member is God’s choice. They may be by relation, and I am happy when they are, or they may be by design. I believe God places each one to fill the empty chairs. I am privileged to have a seat here with my family at the table.

“While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.”
He replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

Matthew 12:46-50 (NIV)