This time of year we often think family....Mother's Day (May);  Father's Day (June) and Festival of the Christian Home Month (May).    Family is that place where "iron sharpens iron."    It is not always easy.   Sometimes being family is downright tough.   Yet, if we allow and do our fair share in terms of responsibility and participation family can be a pretty special and cool deal.  And in that specialness we are being shaped and formed for life and living.   I often quote American poet Robert Frost's line which says, "Home is the place that when you go there they have to take you in."  Why?  Because you belong.    This is the way it should be.  This is the way it is intended to be.   My heart and compassion go out to those houses where it is not truly a home and where dwellers therein do not really pereceive and feel that they do belong!

It takes work.   It takes commitment.   And, above all it takes unconditional love to make a functional family (as some have quipped dysfunction is a relative matter - - pun intended!) and a wholesome home.    Proverbs 24:3-4 tells us:  "By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; and by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches."

Following are some wise words - - for building a healthy home - -  from writer Dorothy Nolte.   They apply to all God's children, big and small:

If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn.
If a child lives with hostility, she learns to fight.
If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy.
If a child lives with shame, she learns to feel guilty.
If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient.
If a child lives with encouragement, she learns confidence.
If a child lives with praise, he learns to appreciate.
If a child lives with fairness, she learns justice.
If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith.
If a child lives with approval, she learns to like herself.
If a child lives with acceptance and friendship, he learns to find love in the world.

May our families and homes be places of nurture and healthy relationships so that we may reach out and make the world a better place.   Take and make some time to nurture your family!