streams

streams
Showing posts with label Acts 2:42. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Acts 2:42. Show all posts

Friday, August 23, 2019

Micro-Choices

“They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers.” (Acts 2:42 MSG)

During a wedding, the bride and groom make a life-time commitment to each other. They promise to love and cherish each other, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness, and in health. These vows are validated or undermined by the thousands of micro-choices they make for the rest of their time together. Every day, they get to decide whether to treat each other with respect, kindness, honesty, and appreciation. Thoughts, tones, words, body language, behavior--all convey devotion or the lack of it.  When a couple gets divorced, most everyone points to the macro-flaws--infidelity, ideological differences, addiction, etc. Yet, it’s the commonplace cracks, which multiply over time, that truly cause the breach.  

Many of us, at some point in our lives, make a commitment to God. Depending on our religious background, we may have different terms and ceremonies that mark this moment. Our devotion is proved or disproved by the thousands of micro-choices we make in our day-to-day living--our attitudes, our thoughts, our responses, our actions. It’s the commonplace details, the consistent dedication, and the attentive discipline that sustains our commitment to the Lord.
 “Our work as God’s servants gets validated—or not—in the details. People are watching us as we stay at our post, alertly, unswervingly . . . in hard times, tough times, bad times.” (2 Corinthians 6:4 MSG)

Monday, May 13, 2019

Bio-relatives

“They were like family to each other. They also broke bread and prayed together.” (Acts 2:42 CEV)

A friend of mine was adopted as a young child. A few years ago, she tracked down her biological father and a few other blood relatives. She refers to these folks as her bio-relatives as opposed to her real family--none of whom are related to her by blood. I also have three single friends who have lived together for decades. They take care of each other and do life together. They are family.


Kinship is not merely sharing a bloodline but also supporting each other through the journey of life. The words kin and kind are etymologically related. Relationships that are based on obligation, entitlement, manipulation, shame, condescension, and bullying are not kind. The people who are consistently present in your life--those whom you can count on to drop everything and listen to you when you need to vent, those who are familiar with your deepest longings, fears, and insecurities, those whom you can trust, those who encourage you, love you, and accept the real you--they are your authentic family.