Family Is...

Two young people, he and she, came to the registry office to submit an application to create a family. They are called "to the carpet" and begin to conduct an explanatory conversation.

They say to him: "Do you realize what trouble you're getting into? From the moment you say 'yes' to her, you no longer belong to yourself. You will have to forget about all your girlfriends, and not one of them will be able to claim you anymore. Your salary will cease to be yours, and you will work from morning to evening to feed not only yourself, but also those people who will live in your house. And your house will cease to be yours. You will have to replace all the furniture in it to please her. And in the kitchen you will simply be nobody, you will enter there by special invitation, eating not what you are used to, but what they serve you. All your friends will fade into the background, and you will be able to meet them only with your wife's permission. And you will be obliged to come home at a certain time or you will have to give explanations if you are late. And if necessary, we will administratively prosecute you or put you in prison if you suddenly decide not to fulfill your marital obligations to support the family. From now on, your whole life will revolve around this person, who will constantly seduce you and bind you to herself with the charms of tender seductions. Think carefully before you take this step."

Looking into her eyes, the government representative stated: "What have you decided for yourself? As soon as you say 'yes' to him, you will forget about all your guys, you will no longer be able to meet any of them to spend cozy evenings at a separate table in a restaurant. No one will sing songs under the window of your apartment anymore. And you yourself will belong to him all your life, expecting that he will care only about you. Imagine, he will hug you with his hands at any time. You will have to get used to his unshaven prickly chin and listen to his snoring every night. And you will also be forced to feed him all your life, constantly inventing what dish to serve for the meal. And it's even scary to talk about dishes. You will have to wash a whole mountain of dirty knives and forks, plates and cups, the size of the Himalayan mountains. And washing kilometers of linen will become your usual occupation. Sometimes you will work for days for your family without leaving the house. And no one will pay for all your efforts. You will become a free cook, housekeeper, housewife, servant and you won't get away from your duties. And then this one of yours will make it so that you give birth to little monsters for him who will suck the last juices out of you and will scream day and night, not letting you sleep and calmly chat with your girlfriends on the phone. And all your girlfriends will fade into the background. And if this one of yours gets a new job in another city, you will have to leave your cozy nest and drag yourself after him to unknown lands. And while he builds his career, you will have to improve your home so that everyone in it is comfortable. And it is unlikely that anyone will truly appreciate your work."

After this, the registry office representative looked intently at the young people, trying to understand whether they would make such a sacrifice for each other.

The young people silently stared at the floor, trying to comprehend what was happening. The reality of life sobered their minds, and looking at each other, they suddenly saw clearly and looked with the eyes of faith into a beautiful future with its weekdays and trials, with grief and experiences. Now they felt good, they could hold each other's hands for hours and communicate about everything. Will it continue to be so? Will this fairy tale of relationships continue forever? Will they endure all the vicissitudes of family life? What awaits them in the future? What will their relationship be like in a year, two, ten years? The unknown is frightening. But they can no longer and do not want to live without each other.

He decides to answer first: "I am ready for this sacrifice, and I am not afraid to accept all this and even do more than you told. I love this girl and am ready to serve her day and night so that she feels good and comfortable with me. My love for her will help me accept all this with joy, invent something original and delight the heart of my beloved at all times. I am ready for any difficulties for her sake."

She, looking at her friend, broke into a smile, tightly squeezing his hand and said: "I am ready to belong to him all my life. Where he goes, I go. I am not afraid of all these duties, I want to fulfill them for his sake, and it will be good for us in this. And this will become our personal family happiness. Although we now know each other poorly, we have a whole life ahead to get to know each other better. I agree to be his wife because I find in him what my soul desires."

The registry office representative looked gloomily at the young people and stated: "I accept your application. In three weeks I invite you to come again for the solemn registration of your marriage. Only first think carefully before you take this risky step. There will be no turning back. This is a one-way road. And you will have to live on together. Are you ready for such a turn of life?"

The young people laughed, making it clear that they agreed, and cheerfully left the building.

A family is what two people build together, deciding to devote themselves to this good work.

A family is what God invented for man, giving people full power and choice in deciding this question.

A family is what begins in my life once and continues forever, beckoning me with its discoveries and prospects.

A family is that place where I can practice my love without fear of making mistakes, without being embarrassed by my inexperience, but wanting to discover an even greater depth of this gift in order to have even more of it in my life.

A family is a testing ground for testing my true and temporary feelings, to keep what is solid and set aside what is temporary.

A family is me, as I am, before the one who sees everything, knows more about me than I imagine, and yet accepts me as the one she chose.

A family is a constant conflict of two different opinions with mutual consent in mutual love.

A family is caring for each other, regardless of one's own comforts and plans.

A family is the comfort of the home hearth, which she and I create with our own hands, to sit by this flickering light of our attachment to each other and rejoice that we exist, that we are ours and always near.

A family is not only us, but also those whom we love, whom God gave us to teach us something good that we could not grasp living only as two.

A family is what connects us into one whole, while leaving us completely different.

A family is the joint realization of all our plans, interesting ideas and conceived desires in our life.

A family is the best center of influence on the world around us.

A family is that outpost that can achieve colossal success in achieving any goal if we conceive something and begin to accomplish it.

A family is an example of what love can do where it is invited into communion.

A family is...

1. Please read: Phil. 1:6; Rom. 12:9-11,16-18,21; 1 Pet. 1:22; 1 Cor. 4:1-2; 13:4-8; John 15:12,17; 1 Thess. 5:15-24; Eph. 5:25; Col. 3:19; Prov. 12:4; 14:1; 19:14; Matt. 5:8-9,16,48; 6:33; 7:7-8, in light of this topic.

2. What did you understand from this topic?

3. What is a family? Give it your own definition.

4. Do you think a family can be a blessing for husband and wife?

5. What does family happiness depend on?

6. If one of the spouses builds happiness, and the other prefers to live according to the flesh, will such a family be happy?

7. Is God interested in creating happy family unions?

8. Do all newlyweds understand what they are creating and what their partner will actually be like?

9. What drives people when creating a family?

10. How to avoid a mistake and choose the right person when creating a family?

11. Do you believe that there is only one person in the whole world who can suit you? If so, what are your chances of success?

12. What should those who created a family and then realized they were hasty do?

13. Is it worth thinking before creating a family about what it is and whether it is the right decision?

14. Do the advice of wise people help avoid mistakes or fix problems when creating a happy family?

15. What role does God play when people make the decision to create a family union? Does He interfere in relationships when He is not asked about it?

16. If both newlyweds are taught to love and have agape in their hearts, will they be able to build family happiness?