I believe the Lord is moving on the earth as a Father! Not only that, but I believe we have entered into a season of family reconciliation!
I was in a prayer meeting recently and the Lord began to speak to me about the prophetic season we are in as the Body of Christ and He expanded my understanding of what He is doing on the earth. As you probably know, the Lord has been showing me the cultural side effects of the fatherless generation over the last few months. God spoke to me and said that this season is not just about Him moving as a father, but also about the restoration of earthly families.
I see God releasing a new grace and anointing for broken families to mend, heal and come together! I believe that families are not only going to be restored but also thrive as a demonstration of God’s blessing, love and passion for relationships! The fact that people don’t know how to do family well is one of the biggest causes of dysfunction in the world! I propose that the restoration of families will redeem modern culture, define destinies, and alter the course of history.
God is touching the world in a way that will restore the hearts of fathers to their sons and daughters just as we see in Malachi 4:5: “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.”
You may be reading this and have a specific family situation that you are desperate to see God move in. Often when we see the Lord doing something prophetically on the earth we have an opportunity and invitation to partner with the grace He’s releasing so that we might see breakthrough in our own lives.
Today I want to give you some tools for partnering with family reconciliation in this season so that you can take hold of God’s promises over you.
THE REDEMPTIVE POWER OF CONFRONTATION
One of the biggest obstacles for family restoration is the fear of confrontation. In any relationship, we risk the chance to be wounded by another, in the same way that we put our hearts out there to be loved.
The key to long-lasting connections is not found in whether or not we experience hurt or misunderstandings, but rather in how both parties respond to each other when you hit the inevitable bumps in the relationship road!
Oftentimes we spiritualize our dysfunction and label our offense and bitterness as “frustration.”It’s easier to avoid confrontation when you label your feelings at a lower intensity, giving yourself permission to skirt responsibility and avoid the hard work of practicing brave communication. However, delayed confrontation doesn’t work because we often wait until our anger overcomes our fear, and then our goal becomes punishing the violator rather than redeeming the situation.
I understand that confrontation can be scary, especially if you’ve experienced unhealthy expressions or arguments most of your life. King David never confronted his sons because his spiritual father, Saul, abused his authority in his life. As we can learn from their story, reacting to the way you were raised usually creates another dysfunction. In David’s case, this was responding with avoidance in the place of aggression, and this new dysfunction did not produce good fruit!
CONFRONTING THE BIBLICAL WAY
Thankfully, the Bible lays out some clear principles for confrontation to guide us towards stronger relationships!
Jesus told us in Matthew 5:23-24, that if you go to the altar to present your offering and remember that someone is offended by you, then go work it out with them FIRST. The point? Relationship is more important than worship!
In Matthew 18:15, Jesus tells us what to do if we’re offended with someone else: “…go and show him his fault in private.” In other words, the Bible is extremely clear: if someone has something against you, go work it out! If you have something against someone, go work it out!
Now that we’re clear that working out our issues with others is important to the Lord, here are some of my favorite proverbs regarding HOW to manage yourself in confrontation:
- Proverbs 18:2 says, “A fool does not delight in understanding, but only in revealing his own mind.” A fool only wants to speak his mind instead of empathizing with the other person. Ask questions to get clarity, and make sure the other person feels heard and understood.
- Proverbs 15:1 says, “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” De-escalate anger; don’t fuel it! Angry people have debates not dialogues. Debates only take you further away from closure.
- Proverbs 25:28 “Like a city that is broken into and without walls is a man who has no control over his spirit.” Control your response instead of having a knee-jerk reaction!
PARTNERING WITH THE MOVE OF GOD FOR YOUR FAMILY
More than reconciliation, I want our families to flourish! I release a new anointing for a new season over you as you read this today—and that the anointing would create connection and redemption, and restore sons, daughters, mothers, and fathers to one another.
I declare that this is a season when the prodigals come home! Not just the prodigal sons, but any prodigal family member who needs to be restored to connection again! May God mark a new emphasis on the redemption of families in such a way that we would be the happiest families on earth!
I pray that you would have grace, courage and anointing to take the skills I laid out today… that you may have all that you need to go and clean up your messes and relationships. Be blessed in Jesus’ name! Remember that God is your ultimate Father, and He will lead you into redemption and restoration as He re-writes your family’s story with His love!
Are you praying for a miracle with your family? What’s the biggest obstacle you face when confronting others or cleaning up your relational messes? How do you plan to partner with what God is doing on the earth in this season? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!
