The (Big) Family Of God

• How do you think God wants us to treat the older people in our church family?

• Name an older person whose company you enjoy.

Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.
1 Timothy 5:1-2

God wants believers to act like one big family, to love and care for one another. We know that God wants us to honor our mother and father, but these verses take this commandment one big step further. God wants us to treat every older woman like she is our mother and every older man like he is our father. God wants us to honor and care about all the members of this big believer family, especially the older members.

This caring includes being respectful. God wants us to listen to these older voices. Sometimes, caring just means spending time with someone. It also means lending a helping hand. Older people often struggle to do tasks that we find simple, like mowing the lawn or shoveling snow.

God tells us to care for these people because it’s good for them. But it’s also good for us. When we care for older people, we learn so much about love, life and God. When we obey God by caring for older people, everyone benefits.

PRAYER
Dear God, please show us a way to help an older person today. Please help us to be patient, respectful and caring to everyone, especially to our elders. Amen.