So the Israelites did everything the Lord commanded Moses; that is the way they encamped under their standards, and that is the way they set out, each of them with their clan and family (Numbers 2:34).
Our Father, how perfect are your designs in every way! You place us in families, with vital benefits that include nurture, provision, protection, support, and love. Just as You gave Moses the plan to have Your people set out, each of them with their clan and family, You "set us out" in life with our clans and families. Thank you for our families.
Yet Lord, we know that in this fallen and broken world, families are far from perfect, and many are hurt and damaged, scarred and wounded from brokenness and dysfunction, abuse and neglect. We see this even from the first family You created, where sin and strife, jealousy and envy created havoc, and wreckage, and pain, and suffering.
But You see the hurts of the wounded and shattered, and You desire to draw all into Your healing grace—to bind up the brokenhearted (Isaiah 61:1), and to set the lonely in families (Psalm 68:6). Help us to surrender our pain to You.
Lord, as we approach the time of year, when many are keenly aware of the joy of family and the blessing of connection, Your eyes see others who struggle with the pain of loneliness, the anguish of separation, and the sorrow of loss. We lift them to You. Give us Your eyes to see them, Your heart to embrace them.
We kneel before You in gratitude, our Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name (Ephesians 3:14). We thank You for making us part of Your family, for giving us the gift of family, and for the opportunity to minister love in Your name.
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