Family.

"What is family? They were the people who claimed you. In good, in bad, in parts or in whole, they were the ones who showed up, who stayed there, regardless. It wasn't just about blood relations or shared chromosomes, but something wider, bigger. We have many families over time: our family of origin, the family we created, as well as the groups you moved through while all of this was happening: friends, lovers, sometimes even strangers. None of them were perfect, and we couldn't expect them to be. You couldn't make any one person your world. The trick was to take what each could give you and build a world from it."- Sarah Dessen

I read that quote awhile back when I read her book, Lock and Key and this weekend I was reminded of these specific words. When they came to my mind, I opened the book and found those lines and read them through over and over again. After doing so, I asked myself: "What is family, to me?" It was more than just a group of people I was born into. They were the people who we grow up learning from, the people whose genes are a part of our very own blue print. Chances are, most characteristics and things that make us who we are can be traced back to our parents and how they raised us and how they were raised. Growing up, I learned something different from each of my family members. From my Mom, I learned to give. She is a woman of God who gives with all of her heart, with no strings attached and no expectations for anything in return. From my dad, I learned strength and patience. He is the most knowledgeable, strong, and patient man I know in this entire world, he always, regardless of the circumstances, stayed strong and stayed loving and patient. From my Sister Ashley, I learned to follow my heart. She has always had the Independence and courage to do whatever she wanted, she took leaps of faith and did whatever it took to make her happy, she always took life into her own hands. From my brother Josh, I learned to always stand tall. He has always had a good head on his shoulders, and always has the ability to separate logic and emotion, and how to communicate both of those things. And lastly, my youngest brother Bradley who has taught me compassion. I have never seen or experienced a heart as big as his, who loves and cares deeply about those around him.

You see, although I only talked about a few things each person has taught me... They each have taught me something significantly different. I have been able to take what they had to offer, and turn it into who I am today. Families have trials, they have rough patches, they annoy you, get on your nerves... sometimes you don't know how you came from them.... but regardless of how you feel about your family, they are just that... your family. They were there the day you were born and they will be the ones sitting in the front row at our funerals. God HAND PICKED our families for us, for some reason these people that were born in, married into our families, are there for a reason. We may not ever be able to understand it, we may not always like it... but it is our job to trust that God knows what he is doing, and he knew what he was doing when he mapped out our lives and the people we would spend them with.

I pray that whoever you are, wherever you are... that you take a step back from the issues, the problems, the brokeness, the stubborness... whatever it is, and just thank God for the people he supplied you with. The people that have always loved you, regardless of the decisions or choices you have made. I encourage you to look at what these people can teach you, what they can do to help you be a better person... I encourage you to find the good in those around you, because its there... we are just so blinded by the factors of our fallen world, that we forget that Jesus saw the good in even the worst... the prostitutes, the liars, the cheats, the broken...

Romans 8: 38-39 says, "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present or the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to seperate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Love as Jesus loved, be a follower of a God who is LOVE.