What about Siblings?

Posted on by Amie Posted in SiblingsTagged , ,

Maybe I’m a bit late.  Okay, I’m always late.  If I had know that yesterday was National Sibling day, I would have written this post earlier.  But…It’ll come around next year, right?

I’m one of seven children.  Wow?  Did your eyes pop out?  Haha, I’m used to that reaction.  Do you want to know a secret?  Lately I’ve been wanting even more siblings.  Why?  Well, I love my siblings.  They’re my best friends, and my work team.  We work together, talk together, laugh together, and live together.  Without my crowd of siblings, I’d be lost.

Since I love my siblings so much, does that mean we get along perfectly?  Of course not!  I’m often fighting with my little sister, or getting upset at my little brother.  I even get annoyed with my older brother!  (I’m second oldest.)  But if you ask them for forgiveness for getting upset, it doesn’t matter in the long run.

What ticks you off about your siblings?  For me, it could be my toddler sister scribbling on my laptop.  Or my other sister cutting my doll’s hair without asking me.  Or maybe it was as simple as my book going missing and I know one of my siblings took it.  Didn’t my sister Rose say she wanted to read it?

How do we resolve what ticks us off?  First, we must stop assuming it’s always their fault.  One of the wisest things my mom tells me is, “Blame yourself.”  Two words that are so hard to live out.  How can I blame myself?  It was their fault!  Maybe because it takes two to argue.

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Fine.  I’ll just keep my mouth shut.  I’ll let my anger bubble up inside.  Don’t do that either.  One sure way to injure your relationship with your sibling is to harbor anger.  Before long, you  get angry and start throwing around hurtful words.  The longer you simmer on your anger, the angrier you will become.  Trust me, I’ve tried it.

What if you have blown up?  What if your sibling won’t look at you?  What if they’re hurt…because of you?

My advice is the hardest, and yet must rewarding thing you can do.  Humbly stand before them and tell them you’re wrong.  Because you were.  Whether they had provoked you to anger or not, you got angry and sinned.

In First Corinthains 13, Paul says, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way;”  Do you really love your sibling, if you’re looking at this verse?  Are you patient and kind with your little brother?  Do you strive to be respectful to your little sister?  Do you always insist on your own way, or do you let your sibling pick their way?

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Paul doesn’t stop there.  What?  He’s already given us enough to do!  But, no, he keeps going.  “It (love) is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.”  How often do we snap at our siblings?  Or are resentful because they can do something better than us.  Do we ever rejoice when our brother finally makes the wrong choice?  Mom will finally see he’s not the angel child!

We can’t do the things above in our own power.  We need the power of the Spirit working within us.  In our own strength, we will fail–miserably.  But, Paul said in his next letter to the Corinthians, “for when I am weak, then am I strong.”  Why?  We are strong in Christ, for He is our strength and our song.  Our hope, and our rock in the time of storm.

Without Christ, our life, our relationships, and our world would be hopeless.  Thankfully, Christ came to earth to save you…and your relationship with your siblings.  Stop now and pray that you will have the strength to do what is right.  Go to your sibling, and ask them for forgiveness if you’ve wronged them.  Start on a new slate.  A good relationship with your siblings will pay off.  I’m sure of it.

~~Amie~~

 

44 thoughts on “What about Siblings?”

  5. Reply
    Elizabeth says:

    Siblings are the best… ❤ Even though my siblings and I do get tangled up sometimes and fight, they are THE BEST! And even though I have six brothers, brothers are nice too (most of the time!!! ;D ) And me and Vangi have to stick together, since we're the only two girls, so that makes us even more close! ❤

    Liked by 1 person

      2. Elizabeth says:

        Oh my, yes!!! 😀 I think my siblings are the only people I know that will be as crazy as I am with me…well, except for Amie!!! xD

        Liked by 2 people

    2. Reply
      Amie says:

      I’m sure having all the boys in the house does make you and Vangi stick closer. I think having all these girls in the house make my two brothers stick closer as well. I’m not sure what they would do without each other!

      Liked by 1 person

  7. Reply
    Jac says:

    I am the oldest of 7. My 2 sisters are much younger them me so I tend to do everything with my brothers. But I also because of personality tend to get along with boys better.

    Liked by 1 person

      1. Jac says:

        My sister who is 9 years younger than me is in to contortion and gymnastics. So we bend and bounce on the trampoline alot. Oh and ride our horses together. My other sister is 15 years younger than me and is only 7 mouths old.

        Liked by 1 person

  9. Reply
    Grace H. says:

    This was good! I’ve got 9 siblings… 2 older brothers, 2 little sisters, 5 little brothers… 7 brothers in all. Haha! I hear girls complain about their brothers all the time, and it makes me sad. My siblings are my best friends! It’s always great to hear another girl talk about how they love their siblings and give advice on preserving that relationship.
    I’ve found that often (ESPECIALLY with younger brothers, because when they’re hurt they try to hide it), when our siblings hurt our feelings, we automatically start to almost assume that they don’t have emotions. “Doesn’t he care? Why would he/she do that to me? He/she’s just thinking about herself!” And then we hurt those emotions that they’re hiding and that our anger blinds us to.
    You’re right, it’s so, so hard to say sorry, but for me it’s always been rewarding! And I’ve found it’s always better to say sorry more often (even for things we may not have been necessarily the ‘bad’ one) than to miss and incident when I’ve hurt a sibling. Sometimes I’ve said sorry for things I wasn’t even sure I’d been rude about and realized that my sibling has actually been hurting about that very thing.
    Sorry about the long comment… I just feel refreshed reading posts like this, and I’m a long commenter anyways. 😉 Great post, great advice!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Reply
      Amie says:

      I’m glad my post was a refresher! Your comment was wonderful to see! You are so right. Often when we’re hurt, we like to hide it. I do that often. So we need to ask forgiveness even if we don’t think what we did was all that bad. Maybe just one sharp word, but it was sharp all the same. A paper cut hurts as much as a deep cut.
      Seven brothers? That sounds amazing! I actually like my brothers. They’re amazing people, and I’m sure they’ll change the world some day. 😉

      Like

      1. Grace H. says:

        Yes, I LOVE my brothers and wouldn’t trade them for the world! And I’m glad you like my about page XD I’m picky about them and it drives me crazy if they’re short, don’t have a picture, don’t have enough info, or don’t have a natural, oldfashioned sense of humour. 😉

        Liked by 1 person

      3. Amie says:

        Haha! I’m picky, but at the same time I’m like, “I don’t even know myself! How am I ever going to get this on an about page???”

        Like

  10. Reply
    kaitlynrh1 says:

    Great post, Amie! 😀 This is so true! I have three siblings, and I don’t know who I would be without them. Even though if my little sister sneaks into my room to use my nail polish and gets it all over my furniture and bedding (the one time I use nail polish), or I find one of my brothers using my room for a hide out. 😉 But over all, they are amazing and are my best friends. ❤

    Liked by 1 person

  12. Reply
    Lydia says:

    Wow! This was wonderful and very helping, Amie! I have six siblings and I wish my mom would have more just like you! Each sibling is different and special in their own way.

    Liked by 1 person

  14. Reply
    Jaclynn says:

    We have nine, but it wasn’t until a couple years ago that I actually saw our family as a “large family”.
    When even one person is missing (especially from the dinner table) it is greatly felt!
    When I was younger I thought that when you reached ten you reached the “large family” status but to different people the big family number will be different I mean we know more than one family who has a lot more children than us.
    It’s sad, that big families to some people are a rarity.
    Most houses are larger while families are getting smaller.
    I heard it said “Americans love dry wall and hate children!”

    (I’m not talking about people who can’t have children, people with this difficulty have always been around.
    That’s not why are families are decreasing.)

    And understanding that God placed each sibling in our family for a purpose, it is so important to learn to love and cherish these gifts from God!

    Thanks for the post Amie!

    Liked by 1 person

  15. Reply
    Olivia Bell says:

    I loved this, it’s so true, even for older siblings, since I only have two brothers in their 20’s! 😮 My brother Josh is my best friend, we have so much fun together and our favorite thing to do is laugh, haha! 😀

    Liked by 1 person

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