Full House

I used to watch a show called Full House on ABC. It was a situation comedy (aka “sitcom”) based on the life of a widower named Danny Turner as he raises three daughters. Family dynamics can be a bit unpredictable.  As our kids grow into adults, they develop their own unique personality.

I grew up in a large family and I now have a large family of my own. The average family has two kids, but I have 5 kiddos. I’m very thankful for my family. I treasure the moments I get to spend with them even now that they are grown and sort of on their own.

King David had a very large family. The culture of that day was more than one wife and they often had concubines, who lived with them but had a lower status than a wife. Check this out….

¹These are the sons of David who were born in Hebron:

The oldest was Amnon, whose mother was Ahinoam from Jezreel.
The second was Daniel, whose mother was Abigail from Carmel.
² The third was Absalom, whose mother was Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur.
The fourth was Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith.
³ The fifth was Shephatiah, whose mother was Abital.
The sixth was Ithream, whose mother was Eglah, David’s wife.

⁴ These six sons were born to David in Hebron, where he reigned seven and a half years.

Then David reigned another thirty-three years in Jerusalem. ⁵ The sons born to David in Jerusalem included Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon. Their mother was Bathsheba, the daughter of Ammiel. ⁶ David also had nine other sons: Ibhar, Elishua, Elpelet, ⁷ Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, ⁸ Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet.

⁹ These were the sons of David, not including his sons born to his concubines. Their sister was named Tamar. (2 Chronicles 3:1-9 NLT)

This passage blew me back as I counted 19 sons of David that didn’t include any of the sons born to his concubines. There is only one daughter named as well.  For some reason, I didn’t picture this King of such great stature as having that many kids or that many wives.

I am thankful for my large family but reading this made me tired. I can’t wrap my head around the circumstances of David’s family, but I believe it was a lot different dynamic than our families today. Being at a family gather with David’s family would probably feel more like a family reunion with distant relatives than a gathering of immediate family of brothers and sisters.

As I think about my big family, I’m also thankful for the things I learned growing up in a situation like this.

1. I learned early on that I didn’t always get my way.
2. I learned to get along with others.
3. I learned to be patient with others.
4. I learned how to interact with females after having sisters.
5. I learned that family wasn’t a democracy.

I think the Lord taught me a lot about Himself and His values in the context of family. I also think that the Lord designed family units to be a great place and a safe place to learn how to become an adult and contribute great value in the lives of others.

Pressing On!

Dwayne