“A Feast To Forget”

Monday, February 13, 2017

I belong to a rather large family.  Like with many families, my family has the 'A' side and the 'B' side.  In other words, one part of the family thinks very little of the other part of the family.  I happen to be on the 'B' side, the one that is looked down upon.  The 'A' side has begun organizing a family reunion.  Experience has taught me that they take our kindness for weakness.  They have us bring an obscene amount of food each event, they bring little or nothing, and then they dictate how the food will be disbursed.  There is always conflict.  I know this all sounds silly, but I would like to avoid the foolishness this year.  Would it be wrong of me (in the eyes of God) to send my portion to the reunion, but not attend?

Sincerely,
Fed Up… But Hungry

Dear Fed Up… But Hungry,

Whether or not you go to your family reunion is a matter of preference and wisdom, but it isn’t a sin issue.  God tells us that we must honor our father and mother (Eph 6:2), but that requirement does not extend to the rest of your relatives.  You must always be kind and decent to everyone (1 Thess 3:12), but that doesn’t mean you need to go to every shindig that your family puts together.  Jesus recognized that family ties often are the most difficult (Matt 13:55-57).  Jesus’ brothers were some of the last to believe He was the Messiah (John 7:5).  There were times where even Christ had a strained relationship with his family members.  The key is to be faithful to God and loving to others at all times (Matt 22:37-39).  Avoid bitterness at all costs (Eph 4:31) and seek to prayerfully do what is wise (Jas 1:5).  There is no right or wrong choice in this circumstance… only right and wrong attitudes.

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