This is the eighth of 25 special reflections based on lessons I learned from my mother. These will run from my birthday on October 27 until her birthday on November 20.

Read

Romans 12:3-8

…so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
Romans 12:5

Reflect

When I was seven years old, Mom married my stepfather. He had two daughters from his first marriage, and Mom brought my brother and me into the mix. All of a sudden, we were a blended family. It was around the time of “The Brady Bunch,” and it was impossible to miss the similarity, though there were only four of us compared to six of them.

That’s not to say that the blending of our family was easy. We had our challenges, in part because, while Mom and Dad wanted us to be “one big, happy family,” we didn’t ask to be blended. At times we were less than cooperative, such as the time I spun my sister Suzy a little aggressively in a tire swing, and my other sister Holly stuck up for her by chasing me through the kitchen door – literally crashing through the plexiglass into the kitchen.

But over time the mix actually took. At some point we kind of forgot that we weren’t related genetically and instead of being stepbrothers and stepsisters, we were just brothers and sisters. It helped that Mom and Dad had my sister, Cheryl, together, and having a sister we were all related to gave us something in common. And over the years we’ve bonded more and more, even getting together annually as adults for the 4th of July and sometimes for Thanksgiving.

The family of God is a blended family. We don’t have a choice as to who is going to be in Heaven or even in the next row at church. Ultimately, we all fit together neatly because we have a common Father and serve a common Savior. We all have a role and a purpose in the house of the Lord, and even if we have differences of opinion on various issues, we should always be able to unite around the cross. God’s family is a place of love, acceptance and belonging. We’ve all been equally forgiven and welcomed by the Lord – let us be sure to be equally loving and welcoming to each of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Reflection copyright © 2025 Doug DeBolt.