If there is one thing that we cannot take for granted, it is family. I love my family to pieces. Even though they may drive me a little bit crazy, but I love them anyway. Family is there for us when we are feeling down and depressed. Whether they are our blood relatives or our spiritual relatives, family is there for us. In Philippians 3:20, it speaks about how we are citizens of heaven. In other words, we are part of God’s family. When we are in a relationship with God, we are part of His family. We cannot take that for granted. Family is family. We are supposed to be there for each other, however, there are some people who may not see it that way. Some may see a family as doing different things and expecting something in return. That is not a family. Not by a long shot. A family is when we come together and support each other. When we are in His family, that is who we are: a family. Despite our differences, God looks at our differences as unique and special.
In today’s passage, we see the apostle Paul addressing the church in Rome saying that we have not received the spirit of slavery, but rather a spirit of adoption. There are times where fear can boil inside us and can take over. Because God adopted us and brought us into His family, this means that He has not given a spirit of fear. In 2 Timothy 1:7, it talks about how God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and discipline. Because God has not given us that spirit of fear, there is no reason why we should be fearful. I believe that we are fearful because we give Satan the clearance and the authorization to come in our thoughts and our minds. Here’s the thing: we cannot give him neither of those things. We cannot and should not give him the authorization as well as the clearance. He is denied by the help of the Holy Spirit. We need to be stronger than he is. We are strong because He made us strong.
Scripture
Romans 8:15 NLT- “So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when He adopted you as His own children. Now we call Him, ‘ABBA, Father.’”
Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for adopting us into Your family. Continue to remind us how unique and special we are in Your eyes. Help us to look past our differences and embrace our brothers and sisters in Your family. Help us to not take family for granted. Help Your family come together as one. You have called us to come together as one, and let us be one. Help us to feel more accepted by You. In Jesus name, amen.