Family Ties
“Come, gather for the great supper of God.”
Revelation 19:17 (NIV)
As a little girl I couldn’t understand my Dad’s obsession with family reunions. Every summer we would go to Avondale Park for the Muir or Perkins family reunion. Mama would spend hours cooking a full meal of chicken and dressing; field peas; fresh creamed corn; and cole slaw. She would also bake one of my favorite desserts, her German chocolate cake. The woman was terrified of running out of food before everyone was fed. Mama would then pack our cooler with her food while also making sure to pack a tablecloth to put on the old Avondale pavilion picnic tables.
My siblings and I rarely knew any of the extended family members beyond our own first cousins, aunts and uncles. I can remember begging Daddy not to make us go, but he always insisted on the priority of family. Mama echoed Dad’s belief with her usual, “Blood’s thicker than water” mantra.
The best part of those Sunday afternoon family reunions was getting to feed the Avondale ducks. Mama always popped a big bag of popcorn and handed it to us after lunch was over so that we could go feed the ducks at Avondale Pond.
Sixty years later my view of family reunions has certainly changed. Our reunions are now held in air-conditioned hotels or a family lake home. Reunion food has changed too. Most of it is now outsourced to barbeques caterers and commercial bakeries. The main point of each reunion is to simply gather. With a global economy, most of us don’t live in the same neighborhoods or even the same states in which we grew up.
The word “gather” means to come together and it is used in some form over 450 times in the Bible. God puts a priority on gathering and he expects us to do the same. In an agrarian economy the farmers gathered their crops at harvest; Israel gathered stones to celebrate deliverances. Ruth gathered gleanings in Boaz’s field; kings gathered armies; and shepherds gathered sheep. God gathered Israel’s remnant after the 70-year Babylonian exile. The 12 disciples gathered the broken pieces of loaves and fishes after Jesus’ miraculous feeding the 5000. John 6:12 “Gather up the pieces that nothing will be lost” is my not just my life verse, but also the theme verse for my Bible Bits blog.
Not too long ago as we were watching a beautiful sunset, Bruce said softly, “There’s something beautiful in God’s gift of family across generations.”
The last few weeks have been filled with various aspects of family life. Four generations of extended Evans family members recently gathered at a hotel in Birmingham to reconnect and remember their shared family history. Bruce’s first cousins traveled from New York, Chicago, Gainesville, Memphis, New Orleans, and various places in between to share memories, grandkids, meals, and a few days of family fun. Our Evans reunion included approximately 40 family members in attendance.
This weekend my Muir extended family will gather at our lake house to celebrate our shared family heritage and remember our past together.
The family is God’s Divine Design and primary vehicle for the transfer of truth one generation to the next. Living in a fallen world, life and family can often be messy, but God’s design and his good gift of family isn’t just truth (Genesis 1:27-28), it’s beautiful. The effective transfer of truth one generation to another is always intentional and relational. Being intentional means that we get the message- Who God is and what he has done- out of our mouths. Being relational means that we earn the right to be heard.
What are you doing to preserve your family memories and pass them on to the next generation? Who needs to hear stories of God’s faithfulness and provision in your life? This year, Bruce’s cousins gathered old 8MM black and white reels of film from almost seventy years ago, had them digitalized, and then shared in the cloud so that all Evans family members had access. It was truly a precious gift to be able to see Bruce’s Dad, Big Bruce, who died in 1968 before I ever met him.
One day all of us who are in God’s family will gather for the great supper of God (Revelation 19:17). People from every tribe, nation, and people will be gathered there feasting at the marriage supper of the Lamb. (Revelation 19:9)
And speaking of weddings, Happy 49th Anniversary, Bruce! I will always be grateful you chose me!