City Life Starter

Written by Chris Pate

The Word

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Exodus 3:1-6 (ESV)

Exegesis

This week we are focusing our prayers on the three God-given institutions of Church, Family and Government. As we tackle issues of race relations specifically, we can look to reform or repent in each of these institutions as a holistic approach to change.

Today we are continuing to pray for the family unit globally as a church through corporate prayer and fasting.

The need for the family to be unified and preserved to carry the legacy set before them is a profound truth not to be ignored. This is why it is so vital for the enemy to bring division, abuse, heartache and pain through our family members. Those closest to you can hurt you the deepest and if the enemy can divide the family he can divide everything else. When I’m hurt by a family member, it cuts deep into suspicion of everyone else and destroys trust, which fractures relational intimacy.

If my parents decide to divorce, it can crush the spirit and resolve I might have for a loving and committed marriage in the future. These things can easily creep into my intimate relationships as well as my employment relationships. This can hinder my ability to trust any authority or even sense of right, since I’ve been wronged by the very people that were supposed to care for me the most. 

My spiritual life can be plagued now with “Father wounds” that make it really hard to see a heavenly Father in any capacity except for how I’ve experienced my earthly father. This potential trickle down of mistrust and relational dysfunction makes the family unit such an important aspect of society.

However, the family can also be used for tremendous good and loving community, displaying God in a beautiful and healing way. As we look to Exodus chapter 3, I believe it is very interesting that when God first speaks to Moses he refers to being the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This points to God’s relational connection and covenant as well as His passion for the family being a great instrument used by God for redemption purposes. The assumption here is that the family should pass the mission and values of God along from father and mother to sons and daughters as we build momentum and good from one family to the other. 

In fact, out of this family God brought the savior of the world: Jesus. From this same bloodline carried the One that would bring us all together as the family of God, relationally connected to Him. We are grafted into His body, His vine, as one family with a new set of qualities, behaviors and mission. 

Today, as we consider the great obstacles and opportunities the family unit brings, let’s think upon the relational work of Jesus on a cross, restoring our relationship with our Heavenly Father vertically and our relationship with one another horizontally. As we pray for God to unite and bring love, unity, holiness and mission back to our families globally, we can do so with great faith and confidence because we serve a familial God. 

Prayer

God, I thank you that you are a good Father. You love your children and give us great honor and dignity by giving us a mission to achieve that’s greater than us. We need your help and intervention in our families around the globe. Unite us under your love and commandments as the way, truth and life. Draw fathers and mothers to their sons and daughters in reverence to you. Restore honor to one another and bring forgiveness of sins as we look to you who paid for our sins and the sins of our family. Rebuke the enemy and let us not fall into his schemes, but let us crave reconciliation for all and watch you work on hearts by your Spirit.

In Jesus’ mighty name, amen.