Anchor House, Week 7: Family

This past week it became clear to me that one of the unspoken core values of Anchor House is family. Last Monday was President's Day in the United States. That meant no school for the kids. Anchor House was filled with grandkids and kids who chose to serve on their day off of school. There was cooking, baking, ship visiting, envelope stuffing and sealing, kitchen work, and cash registering (not sure that's a word) all being done by kids with servants' hearts. On Presidents day, Anchor House looked a bit different than most other days.

Later in the week I had the chance to see old pictures of the Anchor House. It was in the early days when a trailer was used and the current space was being built out. As I looked at the photos, I couldn't help but notice the kids. Some were posing for a photo and others were caught in action as they were playing foosball with seafarers. Nonetheless, their presence indicates something special about Anchor House.

The Bible is filled with examples of families. Afterall, the gospel of Matthew begins with Jesus’ geneology. Family is at the heart of the Gospel. As followers of Jesus we are God’s daughters and sons. That means we are brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. In Hebrews 13:1, Paul implores us to love each other as if we were brothers and sisters. Jesus says, “Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” in Mark 3:35.

In 1 Peter 5, he speaks of the devil lurking around ready to spring into action. He tells us to “Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” Basically, we stand united as a family through faith. We, also, share in the fact that the devil prowls and is ready to pounce. When we choose Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we become a target for evil. The enemy wants to change our minds. The devil doesn’t want us following Jesus.

But we have encouragement. We are not alone. We are in this together with our family of believers. Family is the heart of the value system at Anchor House. Family is at the heart of our walk with Jesus.

Be blessed and be a blessing,

Matt

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