Healthy Family Trees

S

(1 Chronicles 17:11,13) When your days are fulfilled to walk with your fathers [i.e., die], I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. ... I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son, and I will not take My steadfast love from him, as I took it from him who was before you.

O

God gave Nathan this vision as a prophetic encouragement to deliver to David. God used extended family to deliver this important message, which was God's response to David's spoken desire to lead the nation in greater worship of God. Specifically, David's desire was to establish a permanent residence--presence--for God among His people. This desire was birthed out of David's gratitude for God, who, in His grace and mercy, called David and made his life meaningful and valuable to others. And God let us see this "gift exchange" between Himself and David. Even though it was ridiculously lopsided (God's gifts were unspeakably precious and costly), the exchange brought mutual delight to both God and David.

A (Personal)

Saul was the king immediately before David, and Nathan reminded David of how Saul foolishly trashed God's gifts and love (verse 11). Unfortunately, just as Saul walked away from this amazing relationship with God, so did Solomon after David. That's crazy! So I ask myself, Am I mindful of how profoundly my life is affected by my trust in God, which is established by my love for God? And even more importantly, am I mindful of how it affects my children's willingness to trust and love God, too?

A (Psychological)

Our awareness of our role within generations is vital to our personal health and the health of our extended families. Edwin Friedman (Generation to Generation, pp. 31-34) describes it this way: "When family members are able to see beyond the horizons of their own nuclear family area of trouble and observe the transmission of such issues from generation to generation, they often can obtain more distance from their immediate problems, and as a result, become freer to make changes.... The more we understand [our intergenerational position], the more we can learn to occupy it with grace and savvy, rather than fleeing from it or unwittingly allowing it to program our destiny [and] the more effectively we can function in any other area of our life."

P

Lord, I know that violent people (that is, people who don't promote loving or trusting you) want to destroy our lives and steal the gift that You have ready for us (verse 9). I see now, that anything or anyone who cools my love for You is doing violence against Your goodness. Help me to not lose sight of Your goodness and Your healing commandments. Help me love so well that my kids can enjoy the fullness of worshiping You ... so Your kingdom is permanently established--day by day--in their hearts, too.