Family Gatherings

For the first few years of my marriage I was in the Navy stationed far from home. We would try to get back home a couple of times a year, often during the holidays. We always looked forward to seeing our families. We are close both to my family and my wife’s. But those “vacations” had a certain tension. It seemed we were always balancing the time to be spent with each family. Christmas with one; Christmas eve with the other. Maybe the opposite split for New Years. Many Christmases we had two big meals. Now, many years later, my family gathers on the 23rd of December to avoid as much as possible, scheduling conflicts with the increasing complex family relationships. It is often the only time during the year I see some of my family. Rose’s family has become much smaller and that has made things less complicated.

I am getting that same kind of feeling for next Saturday. I have a Kairos meeting in Baton Rouge and a Fall Family Fun Day in Maurice. Two of my families have a scheduling conflict. I have to admit that I haven’t normally gone to the Family Fun Days in the past. I looked at them as kid events, focused on young families. I’m not young anymore. But I have a different perspective this year. It’s more like a family reunion. Although we gather each Sunday and at various times during the week with small parts of our family, there is nothing like getting together for a day and having fun.On Sunday, we have brief moments of personal contact.  There will be much more opportunity for one-on-one contact on Saturday.

I am proud of both of my Christian families and want people to meet them. We should want to bring friends to our family gathering, to meet our family and maybe get to know the Lord who is the head of both families.   Yes. I have a conflict on Saturday. But it’s a good kind of conflict to have. We all need to have families that we want to be with.

No matter which family I spend Saturday with, half of me will be with the other family. That’s one reason I’m so excited about how many of my Amana Family want to meet my Kairos family. Thanks for signing up for our November 13, gathering at Angola. It’s going to be great. Saturday will be great too, in Maurice and in Baton Rouge.