Reflection Of A Family Ministry

Starting off this class with reading what Family Ministry is defined as opened up my view on how Family Ministry can be diverse in a variety of understanding. Diana Garland stated that “family ministry is any activity that directly or indirectly (1) forms families in the congregation community; (2) increases the Christlikeness of the family relationships of Christians; or (3) equips and supports families for the work to which they are called together.” Earlier in the reading she stated that “The flurry of programs called family ministry is the fear that Christian families are falling apart and need churches to strengthen and support them.” Diana Garland’s definition is what I strive for in ministry and I believe that she also is aware …show more content…
The word Christian has unfortunately been made to be a negative word by today’s society. Disciple is owning the responsibility of what you are doing. There have been so many issues created by people who were Christian in the name of Christianity and not truly reflecting Christianity that the image must be revamped and truly own its purpose. Disciplining does not end with the person who chooses to have a relationship with Jesus, but should be a repetition of creating more disciples and so forth. The question of are we doing things that we are called to do is brought up and it was especially concerned with us as people and not as the church building. With the advancement of women in the workforce and absentee fathers the church was needed more than ever for the development of families. Agencies and non-for-profits were created to support the youth because the adults were the sole focus of the church on at that time. The concept of children’s church was introduced and a major conflict of it was that parents believed that the responsibility of spiritual growth was now the church’s task. Also, there were church professionals that were hired for the first time, including Lead Pastors, Youth Pastors, Worship Directors, and other positions. This was needed at a time when families were busier than …show more content…
“The sociological study of the family has taken two different approaches to defining families—one begins with a structural definition based on the ways persons are related to one another biologically and/or legally; the other begins with a functional definition based on the ways persons relate to one another, or function in one another’s lives, in ways expected of family members.” We talked about a girl at church who was adopted who said that she was special because her family chose her and had other options whereas, those who are born in families don’t have options of who they are related to. Structural and functional families are essential aspects of Family Ministry. I can think of a time when one of my best friends told me how my mom had really touched her heart when we were at my son’s christening. They asked for family to stand up in support of Drake and my mom told her along with my other friends who were there to stand up. My friend felt honored that my mom considered them my family in addition to my birth family. Family is such a strong word. For churches understanding and recognizing that families are not one shape and size and make up different components to different people is an essential step in Family Ministry. A friend may be considered family compared to one’s own genetic family or your family may be strictly blood relatives in your opinion. For people