I Have Family Everywhere

God willing, by the time this post goes live, I will be on my way to Beirut. I’ve been looking at articles on Lonely Planet and Wikipedia. I think that's what people do these days before they travel. I’ve learned a little about the place I’m about to visit, but you never really know a place until you’ve been there.

I know one thing that a travel guide won't say: I have family all over.

Family Everywhere

I first experienced this as a child. My parents had separated. My father moved to Margate, England. The first time I went to visit my father with my sister, I was terrified. I knew nobody in England except for my father, and I wasn’t completely sure what to expect from my father.

The first Sunday in Margate, my sister and I made our way to the church just off the main square. Even though we knew nobody, we knew we were home. We sang songs. We heard the Word preached. We took the bread and the cup, and we knew we were not alone. We didn’t know these people, but I sensed I could count on them if needed, even more than I could count on my own father.

It has happened many times since then. A couple of years ago, I saw a group of friends pray before eating in a restaurant in Madison, Wisconsin. I also saw this in Jerusalem on a Sunday about twenty years ago. Each time I visit a new city and go to a church with strangers, it happens again.

One of God's Greatest Gifts

I know that church is sometimes uncomfortable, as Brett McCracken puts it. It can be awkward, and it’s not always what we want.

But it’s one of the greatest gifts that God has given us that we easily overlook. Wherever you go in the world, you have family. It's hard to find a city or village in the world where God doesn't have a church. There, you will find people who belong to the same family and will love and support you, even if they haven’t met you before.

Side note: this makes me rethink how I treat visitors when they come to the church I pastor when they’re just passing through. I get the privilege of showing them the same hospitality I experienced in Margate all those years ago.

I really don’t know what to expect from Beirut. I read that the food is amazing, the hospitality legendary, and the history breathtaking.

One thing I know for sure: I have family there, and I can’t wait to meet them. We’ll worship together, listen to God’s Word together, and (I hope) enjoy good food together. Even though we come from different cultures and sometimes speak different languages, we share a love that overcomes all other differences. No matter where I go in this world, I’m never truly alone. I have family everywhere.