Making Your Home a Haven: Part 1

I’ve been praying a lot about this series and have been very challenged myself as I’ve been working through what to write. I usually like to post somewhat shorter posts, but it has been very difficult to be brief while at the same time giving the topic its due justice. So bear with me - this post is a little long!

First up in our series:

Nourishing Your Walk with God

I’m going to venture to say that THE most important thing you can do in making your home a haven (apart from committing your home to the Lord for Him to do the work) is nourishing your own walk with God. If this part of your life is left neglected or undone you will not be able to properly build your “haven”.

Personally, I know what an irritable person I am when I have neglected my relationship with the Lord. My perspective on His priorities get all out of whack, my patience and grace when dealing with others dwindles, and my attitude as a servant becomes almost non-existent!

I also find that I cannot make proper judgment calls when I have not been spending time with God. Why is that? Well, when I have not been reading the Bible (and thus, don’t’ know the mind of God) it is extremely difficult, actually…impossible, to decipher how to handle things biblically, as well as what to allow and not allow into my home.

This is an area that I am growing in (and have a major growing curve!), and do not claim to be an expert or that I’m consistent in this every day (actually, I need to gain more consistency, that is partly why I’m writing this series!).

That being said, let’s look at a few practical steps on how to nourish your walk with God each day:

THE BASICS

Salvation. I can’t assume that everyone reading this post already has a personal walk with the Lord. If you are not sure if you do or have been wondering how to have a relationship with the Lord, I’d urge you to read this page on how to know God .

Getting in the Word. Think of how amazing your relationship with your husband would be if you never spoke to him, never spent time with him or never thought about him. Lovely, right? Well, the same applies to your relationship with God. You need to spend time in the Word to know God and to nourish your relationship with Him! As you read the Bible every day you will come to:

• Know God better
• Know what God expects of you
• Know what God thinks about mankind
• Know what God has done in the past
• Know what God’s plans are for the future

We also need the Word because our minds are naturally corrupt (we are born sinners) and the Word of God is the only thing that can straighten it out – and that means that there needs to be a lot of straightening done!

On a side note: Each of us has different circumstances and are in different stages of life, so I’m not saying that we all spend the same amount of time each day with the Lord. For instance, if you are a mother, you may find it harder to have the “alone” time that you used to have every day while in college – so take a look at your circumstances, and do the best you can. The main point is to do it every day.

Here are a few resources:

• How to Study Your Bible - by Kay Arthur
• Bible Reading Plans

Hiding God’s Word in Your Heart. Spend a few minutes each day memorizing Scripture. You may want to pick out a verse for the day to memorize, or just try to memorize one verse per week or month – whatever you think is do-able for you…but do it!

What are the benefits?

• When you are tempted, the verse you memorized will ring loud and clear in your conscience, deterring you from disobedience.
• When you are discouraged, you will be comforted by verses you memorized.
• When your teenager or friend comes to you for advice, you’ll have Scripture to draw from.
• You will be able to filter everything through the Word of God that you’ve hidden in your heart and be a wise woman.

Here is a helpful “sermonette” (not even two minutes long) on Scripture memorization.

Spending Time in Prayer. This is your sweet time each day to commune with God, one-on-one. I encourage you to set aside a time each day to pray by yourself. For the rest of the day, do what the authors of “Passionate Housewives Desperate for God” suggest and pray in prayer droplets – pray throughout the day (while doing dishes, folding laundry, etc.) as this is “praying without ceasing”. As your seasons in life change, so will your time for prayer. When you are an older saint, you’ll most likely have more time for prayer (that’s why most prayer warriors are older women!). Just make sure to capitalize on what you have in this season of life!

Regularly attending Church. It’s God’s desire (Heb. 10:25) that you gather with other believers regularly (He must know that we need it!). Not only will you be fed the Word of God from your pastor and given the opportunity to worship the Lord during the services, but you will be encouraged, uplifted and held accountable by other believers.

Putting Off the Old Man. What areas in your life are you holding on to that are unbiblical? Gossip, deceit, an unforgiving spirit, immodesty? In order to nourish your walk with God, you cannot constantly disobey Him! He wants you to forsake your old lifestyle and put on the “new man”, so take a good look at your life and commit yourself to the Lord anew asking for His help to put off the old man (Eph. 4:22).

Other Ideas to Nourish Your Own Walk

Listening to Sermons. This is an excellent way to be constantly feeding your soul. Try turning off the TV while you fold laundry and listen to a sermon instead. You can find free sermons at www.sermonaudio.com .

Reading Christian Living Books. Cozy up on the couch with in a few Christian living books every now and then. You’ll be encouraged, educated and challenged in your walk. You can read on topics such as prayer, evangelism, parenting, marriage, etc. This is a good way to hone in on certain areas of your life that you want to grow in.

Reading Christian Biographies. Other than reading Scripture, missionary biographies have probably been one of the biggest influences in my Christian walk. The Lord often uses the testimonies of other Christians who have devoted themselves to the service of the King and who have gone through trials and hardships to encourage us in our own walks. If you don’t know where to start, here are a few ideas:

• Hudson Taylor (2-volume set)
• Evidence Not Seen
• To the Golden Shore: The Life of Adoniram Judson
• Shadow of the Almighty
• Through Gates of Splendor
• A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael
• Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther
• Stones of Fire:

Keeping Scripture around Your Home. Surround yourself with Scripture. Place framed verses at your desk, sink, nightstand and living room walls. Place memory cards at your kitchen sink. For more ideas on this, see my post on filling your home with scripture (sorry the images are a little messed up in this post right now).

So as you seek to make your home a haven, remember that the woman often sets the tone (we all know the saying, “If Mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy” - that can be very true!), so set the right tone for your home! Nourish your walk with God and let His grace and love flow through you to your family.

Next in our series we’ll be looking at respecting and honoring your husband .