Imagine a family that gathers on Sunday nights for a household meeting. They meet often in other ways throughout the week — for meals, devotions, outings. But on Sunday, the father calls everyone together to review the last week, look ahead to the next, and remember their family identity. The whole family takes part in the meeting, but the father clearly leads.
Now imagine that someone observes this meeting and says, “This father leaves no room for his family’s gifts. Why should he always lead the meeting? If his daughters don’t have a more prominent voice here, then where will they use the gifts God has given them?”
To any healthy family, such a question would seem silly. One of the daughters might well respond, “Where will we use our gifts? In any number of places. I play piano for our family devotions. I help prepare meals for my younger brothers. I put together care bags that our family hands out to the homeless. I mentor a middle-school girl from our church. I may not lead our family meetings, but the meeting is just one part of the family.”
