What Family Means

Tuesday, 26th June 2007

Further to yesterday's blog entry about "faith in action", reproduced below is the email that I sent to my previous cell group members, reminding them about what it means to be a family. It caused some feathers to be ruffled, but it was timely and done with good intentions.

Date: 10 December 2006
Subject: What does it mean to be part of a family?

Dear fellow members of 3L2

Eugene has described our cell as a family. A family is one that cares for and looks out for one another, and shares both times of joy and times of difficulty.

I am very glad that almost everyone of us went to visit Andy during his recent operation. We can rest in the assurance that when we ourselves are in times of need, the other family cell members will likewise rally around us.

Forgive me for saying this, but saying that one is too busy or has no time is really nothing but a poor excuse. Every single one of us is given 24 hours a day. If we consider something important, we will make time for it.

For example, we will find time to study for our exams, to work on a project the boss gives to us, to watch a soccer game that is shown at 2am, to play a round of golf, etc. Why? Because if such an activity is important to us, we will make a conscious effort to set aside time for it.

The question therefore arises whether we consider our fellow cell members important enough to us, such that we set aside time for activities such as cell meetings, potblesses and hospital visitations. Loving and caring is not merely the lip service of saying, "I cannot attend cell meetings but I am praying for the cell."

Just as faith without works is dead, so is love without concrete action. God did not just say, "I love mankind, but I will just sit here in heaven and pray that everything is OK for you". His love was demonstrated by His leaving the comfort of heaven, coming down to earth as a mortal man, and even to the point of dying for the sins of mankind.

My prayer for all of us is that we will examine ourselves and come before the Lord in humility. If the cell is indeed our family, let's start giving it more priority and set aside time specifically for it. If we have busy schedules, let us commit our busy schedules to the Lord. If we truly desire to spend time with our cell family, He will definitely honour our desires and re-arrange our schedules such that we are able to do so.

Shalom
Malcolm