The Spiritual Family; A Place For Change

By Okpara Gloria Ngozi

if you were asked the following questions, what will your response be and why?

What are the misconstrued in family-life among youths today?
What do you think needs to be changed in the modern family and who needs to make that change?
Is the notion of family a social norm or a divine mandate?

These shocking and mind-provoking questions are the epicenter of this awesomely inspiring book, The Spiritual Family; a place for change. This book is a product of over 30 years of marriage experience, ministry, counselling sessions and teaching series of a renowned speaker/mother- Okpara Gloria Ngozi structured to help people unravel the mystery, discover the truth and then practice such truth in their families.

In this book, Okpara Gloria Ngozi goes beyond the societal norm, and dives into the realm of divinity by exposing the truth hidden in God's words (which are theoretical and practical) and urge people to practice it. She reveals the change that can be achieved through the truth in this book.

If you feel scared to get committed in a relationship or you feel that your spouse isn't 'the one' or that you are about throwing in the towel on your marriage due to aspects of him/her exposed by sickness or the current pandemic that kept everyone locked down at home, then beloved, this book is for you.

Yes, you!!!

Don't get confused, the path laid out may seem difficult because the family which you have or hope to have is God's institution but it is and remains practicable.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Okpara Gloria Ngozi
• Release date: May 25, 2020
• ISBN: 9780463680605

Okpara Gloria Ngozi

Okpara Gloria Ngozi is a pastor in the Redeemed Christian Church of God. A retired Director of Education with the SUBEB, Lagos. She has a Bachelor Degree in Education from University of Ado-Ekiti and had her professional study from the Institute of Education, University of Lagos.She is a graduate of the Redeemed Christian Church of God Bible College and later lectured at the Liberty Campus of the same college. She remains a dedicated Sunday School teacher.She has been married to her beloved husband- Elder Steve Okpara for over thirty years and the union has been blessed with Godly children and grandchildren.Her passion lies in saving marriages which she has been doing through giving talks in workshops, seminars and counselling.

Book preview

The Spiritual Family;

A place for change

Okpara Gloria Ngozi

Published by Kristof Publishers

Copyright 2020 Okpara Gloria Ngozi

Smashwords edition

All rights reserved. No part of this ebook may be produced or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the written permission of the author. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.

CONTENT

Dedication

Forward

Preface

CHAPTER 1

The Christian Family

CHAPTER 2

The God-kind of Marriage

CHAPTER 3

A virtuous woman

CHAPTER 4

The Christian husband/father

CHAPTER 5

The challenges of life in the family

CHAPTER 6

Focus- a prerequisite for willingness to serve in the family

CHAPTER 7

The Presence of Opposition to the Spiritual family

CHAPTER 8

Never Give up !!!

CHAPTER 9

The place of wisdom in the Spiritual family

CHAPTER 10

Steps to success in your family

About the Author-Okpara Gloria Ngozi

Connect with Okpara Gloria Ngozi

FORWARD

"The Spiritual family; a place for change’’ is a great guide to living a successful family life. This master-piece presents great potentials inherent in the unit called family; and provides guidance on how it can be tapped through adherence to biblical principles for a successful family life.

The author drew from her skills in teaching, consulting and research to create a versatile, flexible and insightful text for couples and intending couples.

The book has ten well-constructed chapters designed to shed more light to youths, intending couples and couples on the dynamic nature of family and the mindset of God pertaining to it. To enhance learning and comprehension, the author carefully selected practical illustrations and case studies to drive home the key principles for a blissful and victorious family life.

Viewed in the light of the above observations and the fact that the author presented text in order to raise awareness of the mind of Christ towards family and the change expected of society through the family, I strongly recommend this book to everyone so that we can have a successful family unit which translates to successful nations.

Adebesin Adegoriola A.

PREFACE

The Spiritual family; a place for change opens up the mindset of God pertaining family which is the anchor for change in all spheres of life. While painstakingly covering the most important topics that affect family, the author presents you with a book whose approach is truly insightful.

The idea behind this book, "The spiritual family, a place for change’’ emerged some years ago and developed with time as the author's marriage matures. Her interactions, teachings as well as practical family matters aided in bringing forth insights in this book.

Accordingly, youths need to have a deep understanding of how the God-kind of family operates and the connections of different components. They need to also understand the nature and purpose of family including its challenges. Again, the married and singles need to appreciate the fact that the society is characterized by turbulence, and the confusion in it is creeping gradually into the family system. The family hinged on worldly principles is easily swayed by it while the family anchored on Divine principles stays unshaken and uninfluenced.

The married and single need to understand the mindset of God and the resources available to operate in His kind of family. The ethical issues in family and society, the various perceived risks associated in starting an ungodly family.

The author is convinced beyond doubt that, The spiritual family, a place for change is truly one of the most insightful books for this perverse generation as it has the ability of liberating families from the influence of society and building a God kind of family that cuts across generations geared towards heaven.

Everybody created by God has a deposit of potential and unless such potentials are maximized, it cannot achieve and actualize its purpose. There is a divine purpose for the family and until men and women key into that purpose, there exists a large wilderness to be roamed in.

God has called you to make the change positively wherever you find yourself. You need to contribute your own quota and collectively a virile nation is built. A nation that has its foundation on the Rock of Ages must start from the family.

It is worth noting that in doing these; there will be oppositions, obstacles and intimidations. In the scripture, Nehemiah faced such but he depended on God absolutely hence he achieved his goals.

My wish is that this book will inspire us all to change, effect changes and grow to become more like Christ each and every day and not only that, but God himself being alongside to keep you steady and on the track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus.

God who got you started in this spiritual life’s adventure called family shares with you the life of His son and will never give up on you.

Never forget that!!!

CHAPTER ONE

THE CHRISTIAN FAMILY

The Family as a Body of Christ

The death, resurrection and glorification of Jesus in heaven is the foundation of the body of Christ. Before there can be a body, there must be a head, so we have Christ Jesus exalted in heaven as the head over all things first, then his body is founded on the earth by the Holy Spirit sent from the glorified head.

And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.

And He is the head of the body, the church who is the beginning,

the first born from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence.

Col. 1:17-18

The family then is His body on earth, His complement which fills up or completes the mystic, glorified man just as Eve was necessary to the completeness of God’s thought as to the first Adam.

‘‘And the LORD God said,

It is not good that the man should be alone;

I will make him an help meet for him.’’

Genesis 2:18

The family of Christ is but one body though comprising Father, Mother, Children and others. Each one differs from the other having different roles to play in order to have a dynamic home.

Inspite of the many differing roles in the family, God still sees His true children on earth as one body in Christ. No matter the various tribes or ethnicities prevalent in the world, God recognizes all as His body since He was the one that ensured that man’s tongue be diverse.

And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar. And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people are one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city.

Genesis 11vs1-8

Hence, there should be no division whatsoever because God recognizes only one body in Christ and that alone is dear to Him.

A family should be regenerated, spiritually alive, living, a working organism functioning under the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit.

The church being the family of Christ Jesus is a composition of various earthly families that truly believes in the teachings of Christ Jesus as sincere representatives of God here on earth.

The Christian family is an awesome work of God. Its order was created in accordance to God's infinite wisdom right from the inception of the world. This order therefore is rooted to the order of both the state and the church.

According to His wonderful covenant of grace, the Lord has given a very central place to the Christian family. The Lord's blessing resides upon the Christian home; a place where He is worshiped and reverenced.

Husband and wife who live faithfully in marriage according to the holy ordinance of the Lord experience the richest blessing which God gives to man in this earthly life. The Christian home is a blessed spiritual haven in the midst of this wretched miserable world of sin.

The blessedness of God's covenant is experienced there in the most wonderful way as husband and wife and children live in constant communion with the Lord, the blessed God of salvation and in close, blessed communion with each other.

The Lord is pleased to continue His church chiefly from Christian families. He did that with the Patriarchs of old and continues to do that today in the New Testament era, realizing His covenant promise with believers and their children.

Ideally, the Christian family is the place where each new generation of the people of God are brought forth, taught the knowledge and fear of the Lord, and nurtured in the totality of their being, physically, psychologically, socially, and spiritually.

According to the purpose of the Lord, the Christian home trains the succeeding generation to become servants of the Lord in His church and kingdom. So the Lord prepares each succeeding generation of His saints to live with Him in eternal glory. What magnificent things these are. Each generation is conceived and brought forth in sin. They are brought forth into a wicked and perverse world yet by the wonder of His grace, He raises, saves, and preserves His people, and for this, He uses especially the Christian home. 

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