Recently my good friend Lee asked to bring some folks over to the house to pray for us. After considering his thoughtful request, I declined because our sons’ families were coming in for the weekend, and we’re never sure what will happen with a full house. But Lee’s request caused Jan & I to reflect on both prayer & family. Then the Spirit reminded us of something we had done several times in the past - have “church at home”. When the boys were young & got sick or we were snowed in on Sunday, we would gather downstairs, play some songs we all knew from working with our HS Youth Group (we usually took the boys with us), read some Scripture & share. It was a way to honor the Sabbath together as a family, and the boys liked it!
Well, since it’s hard for me to attend church, everyone was planning to just stay with us. So Jan & I suggested “church at home” & everyone said “Let’s do it!” So Sunday morning we all gathered, Papa & Papa Jan, four awesome sons, three incredible daughter-in-laws, and four wonderful grandkids. We shared our hearts, spoke deeply of where God has led us, prayed for one another, prayed for each other’s families, praised the Lord, cried & even laughed. It was an incredibly rich time in the Spirit, bringing us all so much closer to each other & to Christ, strengthening us all for our journeys ahead. A very special occasion that still brings deep joy to our hearts, as we reflect. Even the grandkids were unbelievably well behaved, as if they knew this was from the Lord, or His angels kept them content. As Jan & I were discussing it a few days later, we agreed, this was something so unique, yet exactly what God intends for His people. So we want to encourage those who read this to take a Sunday & take some time with your family and have “church at home”.