Blog 4: Choosing the Purpose of Your Home

"The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down." Prov. 14:1

You live in a house, apartment or duplex. It might be huge. It might be small. You may live alone or you share it with many. But to each and every one of us that place is our home.

So what is the purpose of a home?
Think about it for a minute and write down your answers somewhere.

Now I want to know what purpose is your house serving.

Try to be honest when answering that question.

There are a couple of purposes that are obvious: a place to eat and a place to sleep. But I think there are other purposes of the home that we have forgotten or have such a mess in our homes we cannot let the home serve its purpose.

1. A place of worship

2. A place of refuge for ourselves and for others

3. A place of teaching

4. A place to serve

You might be thinking that sounds like a church. I would have to agree it does, but I think it still is the purpose of the home. Please open your mind for a minute and listen.

1. A place of worship: Whether you live alone or have a family, we should be coming before the Lord in prayer and in song. We should praise him when we sit to eat, when we rise, when we lay down, when we feel the breeze or raindrop in the backyard, and even when we hear our noisy healthy kids run through the house.

"I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips." Psalm 34:1

2. A place of refuge: After a long day, our home should be a place we can take a break from the world. It should be a place others know they can come when they are hurting.

"Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him." Psalm 34:8

3. A place of teaching: If you are a parent listen carefully, your home is the most important place in your child's learning. I am not talking academically or athletically. I am talking about the spiritual training. It is to start in the home. If you are not a parent, it may be learning with your spouse, roommate or even a neighbor that is watching.

"Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home, when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." Deuteronomy 6:7

4. A place to serve: We should be serving one another in our homes. We should be helping one another not waiting on someone else. We may not physically wash each other's feet, but we should be willing to serve our family members or roommate in the way needed.

We will get into each one of these in days to come, but for now ask, are the purposes of my home a choice? Have I chosen the right purposes for my home? Can my home even have a purpose because I have chosen to let it be such a mess? Are my choices building my house up or tearing it down? Have my choices put more of the world than of God in my home?

I am so ready to dive into all of the discussions, but I will have to wait. I want you to reflect on the choices you have been making for your home. I want you to go before God and ask Him to show you the choices you have made that negatively and positively impact your home. Most importantly, I want you to praise Him for your home. We are so blessed to live in places that have four walls, a floor, and a roof over our heads. So many do not even have that privilege.

I look forward to the days ahead and the journey we will take together. Please choose to join me on this journey as I learn with you and you with me.