The theme for our family retreat on September 2-3 is “We are Family.” This theme reminded me of the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates who used the Sister Sledge anthem, “We Are Family,” throughout the year. They ended up winning the World Series over the Baltimore Orioles in 7 games. In fact, the Pirates were down 3-1 in the series and had to win the final 3 games. Maybe there is something to this idea of a team playing as a family or perhaps a family playing as a team.
God instituted marriage and the family in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2). He created Eve as a helpmeet and mate for Adam. This started the family of man. Within the family of man is the family of God. God call the Israelites His family in Amos 3:1 and Christians are considered God’s family today (Ephesians 3:15). “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!” (I John 3:1)
Every family has its challenges and it seems especially true in God’s family, the Church. We need to balance our earthly family needs with serving God. We need to love our family members and work together to advance His Kingdom. Loving one another is a distinctive feature of Christians (John 13:35). In order to properly love our family we need to get to know each other better.
For this reason, the Karns’ eldership decided to have a family retreat. We want to emphasize that the retreat is for all. It is for the young and old, singles and married, families with children and any other category of Karns’ members.
Justin outlined the schedule for the retreat in the bulletin two weeks ago. Let me assure you that there will be activities, learning, free time and just plain fun for all.
We are family!
For the elders, Dave Benner