By Ryan Kelly

I had the joy of spending a fun and relaxing weekend with my family.  Although most weeks are like this for us, this one was particularly fun for me.  I was able to really take in the blessing that my children and wife are to me, and I was able to spend special moments with them.

One thing that we are working to do is make more activities “family activities.”  For instance, when my daughter had gymnastics practice this week, we all went as a family to watch her.  When my son wants to go to the park, we all go to the park.  It’s the little moments together that keep a family together.

Life is going to try and tear families apart.  When families are separated, they cannot benefit the Kingdom nearly as well as a family united.  Although this separation can start small and innocently, it can result in detrimental conclusions.

Jesus states in Mark 3:25 that, “a house divided cannot stand.”  Although this message has multiple application points, I believe that the notion of a united family is among the most important.

Families must remain strong.  Families must remain together.

In this age it’s a given that life is going to pull your family in 100 different directions.  My encouragement is to reject that temptation and find ways to stay together.  Even if it means sacrificing extracurricular activities or important meetings, you’ll never regret spending more time together as a family.