The Blessing of Family Eccentricities (by Rebecca)

The Blessing of Family Eccentricities

Chapter four from the book The Little Boy Down the Road written by Mr. Doug Phillips inspired me to write this post.

The word eccentricity means irregularity, departing from the norm, special, something out of the ordinary (that only you can do). Large families tend to be eccentric (a lot of variety and different personalities). That is great. It means having a home that is filled with life. The larger the family, the more potential for special gifts and work. Welcoming variation in an environment of unity is key to family prosperity. We cannot prosper unless we can love one another.

The more children distance themselves from the unique look and feel of their family, the more they hinder their potential as multigenerational visionaries because they are exchanging the blessing of family eccentricities for the curse of peer conformity. Scripture says that were your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Time is the greatest treasure a child has. Therefore we must spend that time wisely. How we spend the majority of our day, such as on the internet or with friends, shows where our treasure is. If we spend time with family, that is were our heart will be. Eccentricities reflect both strengths and weaknesses, both add life and color to the church. From the strengths we learn character, and from the weakness we learn to have compassion on others.

Sounds of life

Sounds of a household are windows into the souls of the family. Many homes today are filled with the sounds of the polluting television and shouts of family despair. Homes can also be like a dead tomb because there are no children, which means there is no noise. The Christian household is supposed to be different. It is to be a place alive with love and joyful sounds, filled with people of all ages who are sinners, thankful to God for life, forgivness, and for each other. Sometimes a Christian household could be described as gloriously organized chaos, it is the noise of everyday life. We should love the sounds and eccentricities of our homes and families. It is a gift from God (1 Chronicles 16:28-29).

Where Moth and Rust Destroy (by Jessica)

We all have different interests and treasures. Amos and Micah love trucks (or tractors). I enjoy shopping. Joseph really likes 4-wheelers. But the more we let our interests and earthly treasures consume us, the easier it is for us to get distracted from things eternal, such as God and His word, loving our brothers and sisters, seeing others as more important than ourselves etc. We must remember what our real treasures are and that we are just passing through this earth. This earth is not our home and the only thing from this earth that will be in heaven is people. Our short time on earth should not be consumed with the things of this earth. People are much more important than things. So what is our real treasure?

Isaiah 33:6~Wisdom and knowledge will be the stability of your times, And the strength of salvation; The fear of the Lord is His treasure.

Proverbs 3:13&15~ Happy is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains understanding. She is more precious than rubies, And all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.

Throughout the whole Bible, especially in the book of Proverbs, we see how godly wisdom and the fear of the Lord should be our highest treasure.

I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ. Phil. 3:8


Matthew 6:19-21~ Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Is Christ our greatest treasure? Do we see view our earthly treasures as undesireable(a loss) compared to knowing Christ, the greatest treasure? The things on this earth will not last forever, but God and His word will. His word is the only infallible rule of faith and practice and will never perish.


1Peter 1:24-25 "All flesh is as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away, But the word of the Lord endures forever".


Do people know us by our earthly treasures and our earthly knowledge or do they know us by our heavenly knowledge and our relationship with a God who is; infinite, eternal, and unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth.

Posted by: Jessica

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