THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HOME

I am sure you are aware by now of the Marriage Enrichment Seminar we are having September 30 and October 1. Donnie Hilliard from Faulkner University will be conducting the seminar. Brother Hilliard is well-qualified as a husband of 27 years and a father of two children. He is also the editor of Our Families Magazine, co-founder of Christian Family Development, and Director of the Cloverdale Center for Family Strengths. I am sure he will present lessons that will be thought-provoking and beneficial. I hope you are making plans to attend every session as well as inviting your neighbors and friends to attend.

However, you may be asking why the elders feel this seminar is so important. I would like to suggest a few reasons. First, the family is in trouble in the world. While the divorce rate has dropped slightly in recent years, it is still a serious problem. Families are splitting up; children are separated from one, or both, of their parents. Many families stay together, but they are emotionally divorced. Spouses don’t know how to be spouses; parents don’t know how to be parents; children don’t know how to be children. Family violence is a serious problem with husbands abusing wives, wives abusing husbands, parents abusing children, and children abusing parents. It is also important to remember that not all abuse is physical. Yes, this seminar is important to our friends and neighbors because the family is in trouble in the world.

Second, the family is in trouble in the church. All of the things I said previously could also be said of the church. Perhaps there is one exception. I am not sure the divorce rate is dropping in the church; it seems to me it is on the rise. We need to hear practical, biblical lessons on marriage and the family. We have young people who are dating, or will be soon, who need to hear these lessons. We have young families just starting out who need to hear these lessons. We have families with pre-teens and teenagers who need to hear these lessons. We have families with the empty nest, or close to it, who need to hear these lessons. We have families with grown children, who are in their senior years, who need to hear these lessons. We have some who are widowed, single, those who never plan to marry, but you still need to hear these lessons. You may disagree, but I do not think there is one person who would not benefit from attending these sessions.

The elders think it is important enough to plan this seminar. Brother Hilliard thinks it is important enough to prepare and deliver the lessons. Do you think it is important enough to plan your schedule in order to attend as well as invite others? I guess we will see.

--Lamar