C H R I S T I A N S . U N D E R . C O N S T R U C T I O N
• F U N C T I O N A L . f a m i l y
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LUKE 15:11
prodigal son
functional
adjective
1 of or having a special activity, purpose, or task; relating to the way in which something works or operates :
(the Family Unit)
affecting the operation, rather than the structure, of an organ : (bigger than me)
2 Mathematics of or relating to a variable quantity whose value depends on one or more other variables.
Rather than Look at the Word Dysfunction -
WE FOCUS our ATTENTION on “FUNCTIONAL”
because this is ultimately what we WANT .
if WE SEE WHAT IT “SHOULD” Look like
we can more Easily Correct where we are currently Falling short.
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the MAIN Elements required for :
a UNIT
a Family
a Home
to be Functional
is remembering that
“the WHOLE is Affected by every “one” involved “
Although it seems RARE that ALL the “ones” are Always in tuned with oneAnother
it is very IMPORTANT that we CONTINUE to Understand that
NO MATTER WHAT ELSE MAY BE HAPPENING
the DEEPER we Engulf ourselves in “our specific ROLE”
in that WHOLE,
the Better chance we have of
helping RESTORE BALANCE to the WHole.
Like the bible says,
Romans 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
There will Definitely be Times when one of the “variables” of the WHOLE
(one of the family members or Team Members)
will Not be Concerned at all with “the Whole” .
This is Not the TIME to follow suit or
to be Overcome with Anger and do the Same.
this is when you, one of the Variables of the WHOLE,
must Dig DEEPER in your ROLE in that UNIT
to HELP RESTORE BALANCE and ORDER.
REMIND that other VARIABLE, that somehow GOT DISCONNECTED -
of how LOVED they are
HOW Important their ROLE is
and HOW NEEDED they are.
THIS IS NOT a Time to Criticize and Condemn with Harsh Words
that have no Trace of Love.
SOMEONE Must be more Concerned with the “WE”
than the “my” .
this is the ONLY Way a Family becomes Functional.
WILL YOU BE THAT person ?
this Kind of Attitude can become Contagious amongst the Other VARIABLES
if *you are CONSISTENT and LEAD by Example.
functional
2 Mathematics of or relating to a variable quantity whose value depends on one or more other variables.
this Definition here Reminds us of WHY this FUNCTIONAL Nature is SO Important.
Because as a WHOLE , the Unit is GRADED.
as a WHOLE, the Unit Finds it’s WOrth.
as a WHOLE is Passes or FAILS.
for what Purpose has God assembled your FAMILY, TEAM ?
have you Ever thought about that Question ?
It’s Wise to AT LEAST ASK.
While we want to CREATE our OWN TEAM,
first ASK, why did God assemble this TEAM .
it is Like a Group Project at School.
When Done correctly,
everyone in the GROUP gets one GRADE
based on what they DID as a UNIT.
this is WHY,
even if it’s only One Person - no matter their Rank,
if they SEEK to RESTORE the “Love Bond”,
if that one person Seeks to SATURATE the Unit with Their Love,
they can Destroy the DYSFUNCTIONAL Element .
1 Peter 4:8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
through Consistent RESPECT &
“Self-Sacrifice”, which is LOVE -
Balance, Order and FUNCTIONALITY can be Restored
just as God intended for it to be.
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when it comes to the PARABLE of the
Prodigal Son:
we Focus today on the Relationship between the Brothers.
When we look at a HEALTHY Relationship between Brothers
there is a Certain CAMARADERIE that Exist.
camaraderie
noun
mutual trust and friendship among people who spend a lot of time together
But when this Element is MISSING
and instead their is INDIGNATION & Strife
something FOREIGN , that is not of God,
has entered into the HEARTS of One or BOTH of the brothers.
indignation
noun
anger or annoyance provoked by what is perceived as unfair treatment
strife
noun
angry or bitter disagreement over fundamental issues; conflict
The Benefit of this lesson today
is to Present you with an Opportunity to do a SELF-CHECK.
a SEARCHING of your OWN HEART.
if you are in a dysfunctional Home,
dysfunctional Family,
dysfunctional Relationship
LOOK WITHIN “you” FIRST and see if your HEART is right.
if you ARE MORE CONCERNED with the “WE” rather than the “me”.
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it DOESN’T matter “WHO” started acting Inconsiderately First,
have you Let it Become a part of You ?
if you Find yourself NOT BEING ABLE to be HAPPY for the Celebration of another one of your Family members.
if you FIND it Difficult within yourself to HUG or SAY Hello.
if you FIND YOURSELF Avoiding or easily annoyed.
LOOK within you and PRAY GOD to
REMOVE anything that is NOT LIKE HIM.
sometimes the FIX is as Simple as a HEART to HEART Conversation.
a Talk where you are :
Transparent in how you Express what you are FEELING
but still Respectable in your Delivery.
but then there are TIMES when the Other person
isn’t willing to have that TALK.
in those SItuations you STILL “do your Part”
Overcome EVIL with GOOD.
OVERCOME evil with GOOD
OVERCOME EVIL WITH GOOD.
this PRACTICE right here, being done by ONE PERSON
has SAVED MANY Relationships
and Restored Many Families .
LOVE is GREATER than HATE
more POWERFUL than EVIL.
Although this is only a Parable,
the situation is very REAL for many of us today.
this is LESSON is the beginning of our REMEDY from GOD.
it’s NOT about us
DECIDING what the other people in the UNIT DESERVE from us.
it’s not about FAIR TREATMENT .
it’s ABOUT HONORING God
in the ROLE HE has Placed you in.
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this is not of GOD-
this causes DYSFUNCTION -
1 Timothy 5:8
But those who won't care for their relatives, especially those in their own household, have denied the true faith. Such people are worse than unbelievers.
1 Corinthians 6:6-8
But instead, one brother takes another to court--and this in front of unbelievers!
The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?
Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers and sisters.
i Understand that with so many Individual Variables
in one UNIT trying to Accomplish a mutual Goal,
there will be some Conflict
and Disagreements and moments of Discord -
so , with that being KNOWN,
our NEXT Question to get to the ROOT of the DYSFUNCTION is
HOW DO you RESOLVE Conflict ?
we all face Conflict -
but how you RESOLVE it
determines HOW much of the UNIT
the Conflict will Actually Destroy.
the Underlining Point of this ALL is that
the Adversary is SEEKING to Destroy FAMILIES.
BROKEN HOMES
have a Greater chance of PRODUCING the MORAL REBELLION & Social Decline we see / experience in the world we Live in.
the HOME is the FOUNDATION,
the FIRST ROLE MODEL of what a RELATIONSHIP is
& what Life has to Offer.
when this is BROKEN, our Perspective Becomes Skewed -
a Godly MORAL CODE is never Embedded,
rather we are looking to “Local Media” to help establish our
Moral Code & our Worth
.
Walls are Built up to KEEP our Vulnerability SAFE
because the ONE PLACE we should have been SAFE (Home) >
WAS Overcome by the SELFISH-Ambitions of the Variables in the Unit.
THIS IS WHY protecting the FUNCTIONALITY of the FAMILY, the HOME, the Unit
is So important to God.
the HOME is WHERE MORALS are Established
in the LEADERS of today and for the Leaders of tomorrow .
More FUNCTIONAL Homes will change so many elements of our Society.
from the Music that is released to the Public,
to the Bills that are Passed by our government,
to the Rate of Crime,
to the Number of Abortions,
even all the way to TRAFFIC.
so let us CAST OFF the RAGING Desire to DISMISS everyone and SEEK our OWN.
in the END ,
we end up SABOTAGING the Same Society we Hope one day we will Prosper in .
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1 Peter 4:9-10
Show hospitality to one another without complaining.
God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.
it is WHEN we Focus on the
“WE” , Rather than only the “Me”
that we Truly have a Chance at
experiencing the Functional Family.
REMEMBER - even if *you are the ONLY VARIABLE FOCUSING on the “We” -
through Consistency / LongSuffering / Love
it will begin to MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
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