“I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother, Lois, and your mother, Eunice, and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.” – 2 Timothy 1:5
God created families as a beautiful reflection of his love. He designed it so we may see the depth of God’s love reflected in the devotion of parents to their children. We should glimpse what God’s steadfast trust is like when a child can trust a parent or grandparent. In God’s perfect gift of family, we should experience a safe and loving community within our immediate and extended families.
But no family does this perfectly. Even at our best, we only get a glimpse of God’s love within our families. God forgives us and shows us grace when we fail to live out to our vocation as family. Through this, we share in God’s love and the Good News of salvation through Jesus.
Within our families, we have the amazing opportunity to share our faith with each other, from those in our households, to distant relatives.
We can see many examples of Godly families in the Bible. 2 Timothy 1:5 is a great example of family passing down the heirloom of faith from generation to generation. Here, we see Paul celebrating Timothy’s family for the example of faith they’ve passed down to him.
Timothy was a young Jew who learned the Gospel while Paul was on his missionary travels. As we can see from this verse, Timothy learned about the Good News from his grandmother and mother. Like a tradition or valuable heirloom, Timothy’s grandma passed down the faith to her daughter, and her daughter (Timothy’s mom) passed it down to Timothy! The faith introduced to Timothy by his family grew, and he was able to partner with Paul to help speak God’s Word even further! This gift of God was passed from mother to daughter to son, soon became a blessing for all Timothy encountered throughout the world!
Discuss
Consider your family like Timothy’s. First start with each other:
- What are some ways your family is currently growing and supporting each other in the faith?
- Are there new ways your family can encourage forgiveness and faithful practice?
- What about your relatives? Are you encouraging and supporting them in their faith?
- If yes, how?
- If no, how can we begin to? Begin to brainstorm different ways you might support your relatives in the faith.
Now, think even bigger!
- How can your family be a light to the world? In what ways can you share your faith (as a family) with those around you?
Pray
Begin with the opening prayer, then have each family member pray for the member on their right. Each person should have someone else praying for them.
Opening Prayer: Lord God, thank you for blessing us with family. For the love, hope, and comfort we experience with them. We pray that you would help us to be a light to those around us. We pray for: (begin praying for the person on your right. This can be done aloud one by one, or silently all together.)
Thank you, Lord. We love you, Lord. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
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