PRAY with & for your Family

Hello Ted, 

FAMILY FELLOWSHIP MEETINGS - 

Are they something you and your family should consider?

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. Never forget these commands that I am giving you today. Teach them to your children. Repeat them when you are at home and when you are away, when you are resting and when you are working.”

‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭6‬:‭5‬-‭7‬ ‭GNT‬‬

As I write this email about Cousins Fellowship (CF) I am overwhelmed with GRATITUDE UNTO THE LORD for such a wonderful meaningful real life experience thanks to COVID!?

Each Sunday evening our family "meets" on Zoom or Facetime. We started this practice during COVID when we weren't able to be together very often approximately 2 years ago.

Our 6 grandchildren (and sometimes their friends or "significant others"), 2 daughters, son in law and Tudi and I make up the family fellowship group we call "Cousin's Fellowship" 

The weekly itinerary looks something like this:



• Start Time (sometimes with 4 different time zones!): 5:00 Pacific, 6:00 Mountain, 7:00 Central, 8:00 Eastern. 
  
• Each person shares an individual update
  
• Short Devotion (often the WB eblast that week)
  
• Prayer Requests
  
• Closing Prayer
  
• Pray for one another throughout the week
  

As a 'Grandbear' (my 'grandfather name') I like to hear what is happening in everyone’s life each week. I also love to know what each person's prayer request is.

Daily, "Emma" (Tudi) and I pray for each specific request that Tudi records on our prayer list.

Also I count it a privilege to share relevant scripture with the group that relates to our daily lives. Oftentimes we take turns reading one of the WB weekly emails (like this one).

I shared with CF last Sunday one of my favorite applicable verses in business situations, ”A soft answer turns away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger” Proverbs 15:1

Everyone can identify with that verse because workforce relationships can often be very challenging and it is important to not lose our cool!

SOME OF OUR FAMILY MEMBERS COMMENT ABOUT WHY THEY LIKE "COUSINS FELLOWSHIP"-

NOAH, 23 (GRANDSON)- I love cousins fellowship not only because I get to catch up with my family and see how everyone’s week went but also because I love strengthening our fellowship and beliefs as individuals and as a family.

MARY BRENNAN, 22 (GRANDDAUGHTER)- I love how nice it is to be able to catch up with everyone on a weekly basis! Zoom has created such a positive outlook on technology because it is so easy for everyone to be together even when we are thousands of miles apart. It is always such a relief to be able to join weekly and get lots of support from family ❤️. 

ZOE, 24 (GRANDDAUGHTER)- I love how our family spends so much time catching up and everyone really cares what each person has to say. At first I didn’t think anyone cared about the ins and outs of my daily life - but my family does!❤️ 

 JEREMIAH, 26 (GRANDSON)- I really enjoy hearing how everyone is doing. I also appreciate receiving advice for issues that I may be going through.

TUDI ("EMMA")- 6 grandchildren living in 3 different states with 3 different time zones, it is very difficult to catch everyone for our zoom call. But what a blessing when we do and can hear their voices, see their faces, and get the updates on their lives. We pray daily for their interviews for jobs, their travel, their exams, their doctor’s appointments, and their relationships with friends. Ted usually has a short Bible study to draw our hearts together, and we end with getting their prayer request updates. We love being a small part of their lives.

JOSEPH, 20 (GRANDSON)- I love CF bc it gives me a chance to catch up with family while also gaining a bit of wisdom every time we meet.



TRISHA (DAUGHTER)- I am so thankful for Cousins Fellowship for many reasons. My top reasons would be sometimes with my young adult kid's schedule they are working during traditional church times. It is wonderful that I know they will hear and participate in conversation around Bible verses and Godly principles that they can apply to their lives.

It is also healthy to hear them express their prayer requests and what is on their heart.

I am so thankful for CF and the ability to connect our family no matter where they are on a map and talk about what is important in life. 

TRINDA (DAUGHTER)- Fellowship or consistant Family Fellowship Time is so rare for most families today. Meeting together takes commitment when it isn't always easy or convenient. It takes patience, determination and dedication, even when it's just a small crowd that week. It definitely takes flexible and undestanding leadership!! But it is such a treasure to be able to share with each other, get updates about each others lives and experience the security that authentic care and commitment brings. 

REMEMBER- SET REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS!

If you decide to give FAMILY FELLOWSHIP (like CF) a try here are some things to consider:

PRAYER SUGGESTIONS for a healthy, God honoring family time

• Get outside of self and ask meaningful questions. Find out what’s happening in your family members lives
• Listen intently
• Expect comments that you may disagree with each other. (One of the cousins in front of everyone shared they had fallen away from Christian faith and didn’t believe any more. I thanked her for her honesty, then we continued, knowing others may feel the same.)
• Act humbly
• Speak the truth in love
• Ask people their opinion on different verses like Proverbs 15:1, Ecclesiastes 11:6, John 3:16, John 14:6, etc. Remember, the Word does not return void!
• Try using one of the WB weekly emails as a discussion resource
• Ask for prayer requests and promise to pray for each one
• Learn to Pray Scripture ie Proverbs 15:1 for a deeper prayer life

ASSIGN WEEKLY RESPONSIBILITIES- it's a team effort

Here are our group's assigned responsibilities-

THE TEAM:

• TRINDA gets the word out re our next meeting time and the Zoom or FaceTime connection
• TRISHA gets her family aware of the next meeting
• TED prepares and leads/facilitates lesson
• TUDI leads prayer request time and closes meeting in prayer

CHALLENGE-

You can do something positive about your family communication!

WB is here to help get it going! Definitely I have found the family fellowship has enhanced our witness to people we interact with on a daily basis.

We dare you to PRAY ABOUT IT and ask God: "What is your will Lord?- Should we start a Family Fellowship time?"

-Ted

For more than 40 years Tudi and I have been guided by these verses in raising our daughters and are now very involved with our grandchildren:

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. Never forget these commands that I am giving you today. Teach them to your children. Repeat them when you are at home and when you are away, when you are resting and when you are working.”

‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭6‬:‭5‬-‭7‬ ‭

P.S.S.

 As a reminder, here are the Weekly Prayer Topics:

Week 1- Pray Scripture to pray more wisely and draw closer to God 

Week 2- Pray "Your will be done" (when you really just want to say "no!")

Weeks 3 & 4- Pray “HELP “ when faced with major health and/or financial issues

Week 5- Prayer In the Business World- Don’t waste 80% of your Life

Week 6- Pray for your children/grandchildren 

Week 7- Pray for your church to be a house of prayer/ outreach

Week 8- Pray with your spouse daily

Week 9- Pray (via zoom?) with and for your family 

Week 10-Pray for God’s open doors to witness

Week 11- Pray often for all leaders, locally and nationally