Why Do Christians Wrong One Another at Home?

With a Subtitle: A devotional on family conflict, sinful nature, and trusting God with our children.

A brief Excerpt: Even in Christian homes, family conflict reveals the sinful nature still at work. Acts 7:26 reminds us to seek reconciliation while trusting God with what we cannot control.

The Author is: Rich Holt

Scripture

Our verse for today comes from Acts 7:26, “And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren, why do you wrong one another?’”

Background

I have a friend who loves to tease me by saying he can’t wait until I have four teenage girls. He laughs as he alludes to them sharing the same bathroom, or trying to agree on anything, or better yet, each having a boy that they are interested in. And as he says it, he always rubs his bald head, drawing reference to the fact that he had plenty of hair before his girls took him through the teenage and young adult experiences. And he may be right. The next several years may be full of angst and drama and one crisis after another. There may be constant bickering over personal space, clothes, make-up, boys, music, and on and on. There’s truly no way to know. Up until now, I would say things have been relatively calm, especially in comparison to some of his stories. But then again, we still have a long way to go, and this bus can change directions at any moment. But from my heart of hearts, I try to assure him that our journey will be much less eventful than his. But I know that just because they are being raised in a Christian home, by Christian parents, surrounded by Christian siblings, and loved by Christian grandparents, that that doesn’t guarantee very much. In fact, because they are sisters and not BFF’s living a few miles from each other, they will most definitely have conflicts, but their friendships will not suffer. They are sinful humans, living in a house of sinful humans, being told what to do and having expectations thrust upon them that they would most likely prefer to avoid if they had their way. Their time is not always theirs, their priorities are routinely challenged, their decisions are questioned, and their freedom is limited.

Application

That’s all part of growing up under authority, even when that authority loves them and would die for them. But that love doesn’t carry much when one has been offended and their initial reaction is to do unto others as they have been done unto. And even as I ask myself and them, “Why do you wrong one another?”, I know that their sinful nature is still waging a battle within them, as mine is as well. So I keep praying that the God who gave them to us will continue to draw them to Himself, even if that path looks to be going in the wrong direction at times. He is my only hope, for them and for me. And I’m thankful He is in charge of their future and not I, for He is far more able.

Charge

As we seek Him today, place your worries and questions in the willing, able, all-knowing hands of the Father, and truly trust in Him to do what you are so unqualified to do.