FAMILY

This past Sunday our pastor made an altar call...not at the end of his sermon, but just after an extended time of worship, before the collection, before his sermon. He didn't even preach an evangelistic sermonette -- he just invited those who have never committed their lives to Jesus, or who have wandered off and wanted to re-commit, or even just to"make sure of your salvation", to pray a prayer with him, raise their hands, and come to the front to receive a booklet. Lots of people responded.
 
Directly in front of me sat a family; they are there every Sunday, in roughly the same spot, obviously believers, joining in worship wholeheartedly. It's always clear that they are a close family, as believing families tend to be. At the altar call one daughter responded, and I saw something absolutely beautiful: When she got up and walked to the front, her father walked with her and stood behind his daughter...
 
"The promise is for you and for your children...," Peter said in his Pentecost sermon, and I saw it illustrated on Sunday. Salvation is a personal matter, but the God who instituted the family likes to work in families. Maybe this girl just wanted to re-commit, to "make sure" -- I don't know, but it was awesome to see a Dad accompanying his daughter to the foot of the Cross.
 
Keep on praying, Dads; keep on living out your faith as best you can: "The promise is for you and for your children!"
 
 

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