The Whole Family

The Whole Family

    "For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man..." Ephesians 3:14-16

Have you ever thought about how amazing it is to be a part of this people in the earth today the Bible calls "the body of Christ?" Just to know that when I worship and pray and serve, I am not just doing it alongside the other folks at my local church, but in God's eyes I am working in the harvest alongside people of many different nations, and many different tongues who are called by His name. Knowing this puts a very different perspective on the way we see things as believers. 

For example, when we are admonished of things in Scripture such as to love each other fervently (1 Peter 1:22), bear one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2), or to pray for one another (James 5:16)...who is God talking about? The people we see every week in church, our Christian friend at work, or maybe even the Christians we've met through social media like Facebook?

There is a cry in my heart for us as believers to realize that Christ's body is so much bigger, and our responsibilities extend so much further than that! I am currently praying for a Christian woman in Sudan who is being persecuted for her faith. I have never met her and likely never will, but she is my sister in Christ and she is in desperate need of the grace and favor of God to prevail in her life, for great strength and courage, and for protection for herself and her 2 children. I saw her story in the news and immediately the Holy Spirit prompted me to begin praying for her. When I pray I call out her name as my sister Mariam, because that is who she is in God's heart and in my own. Because I am aware of who my "whole family" is spiritually speaking, I am able to pray with a faith and passion that is equal to the way I would pray for my own earthly family. 

Whether we are speaking of our fellow believers across the aisle, around the corner, or around the world, I ask that we would each pray and ask God to open our eyes and fill our hearts with compassion for our brothers and sisters in Christ who need our fervent love and support in so many ways. Let's allow God to pour through each of us in love, prayers, financial support and any other ways the Holy Spirit leads us to reach out and allow God to minister through us so that "the whole family" will know the great riches of His love. Imagine the strength we can bring to the body as we each follow His leading and simply do our part in His great plan in the earth!

No matter what country we are in and what our current situations look like, we need each other just like every family does. Let's flood heaven with praises and petitions on behalf of each other and lift up our missionaries, church leaders, fellow believers and the harvest of souls waiting to be won across the globe as we watch God fill the earth with His glory!

Your sister in Christ,

Debbie Beck