“Yet he (Abraham) did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God.” Romans 4:20
Holy God, everything I have belongs to you — my home, my car, my food, my marriage, my family. Help me to use them in service to you each day so I can proclaim Your glory and the wonderful work you have done in my life. Amen
I’d have to say one of the first obvious signs that I was submitting to God and giving Him authority over my life was years ago when my brother-in-law came to visit us and wanted to bring his girlfriend. We had two small children and my husband and I decided we needed to model God’s morals by telling his brother that although she could come, they couldn’t sleep in the same room together. He laughed, thinking we were joking. But when we affirmed our decision, he asked how we could decide that when we, ourselves, had lived together before marriage. It’s an easy answer actually. We were now Christians with children to whom we were responsible for modeling God’s will.
Here’s the thing, Christian, it’s ok, even necessary in God’s act of progressive revelation, to change our minds. To grow in our faith. To set up new boundaries. Especially in our own homes. For Abraham, mentioned in our first verse today, he struggled to align his entire household with God. He made bad decisions about his wife, he had to make peace among his family, he was faced with the prospect of sacrificing his son to the Lord. But He kept moving forward in his faith. With each step he learned more about God’s expectations of him and he guided his family and home toward God’s promises. He set history on the right path by giving glory to God over and over. Joshua carried this forward when he assembled all the tribes of Israel.
"15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15
Our home spaces are the perfect place to glorify God. Why? Because when we stand in our home, every blessing we can see belongs to Him. The home, apartment, tent, condo, all belong to God. The food in the cupboards, the furnishings, the beds, the indoor (or outdoor) plumbing – yes, all belong to Him and should be used in His service to glorify Him.
My two oldest friends are unfortunately not believers. And over these last few years I’ve had the Holy Spirit convict me of my behavior when I’m around them. I need to show them the work God has done in me. When they are at my house, I must model God. That means I shouldn’t allow certain behavior or speech within the walls of my house. I fail at times when I let myself be pulled into the world of unbelievers. Sometimes I forget to pray over our meal, I drift into outraged political discussions, and I gossip. My first step was realizing what I was doing doesn’t honor God. My second step is to be more consistent in application.
Friend, if the Lord has blessed you with a comfortable place to lay your head each night, a place to make a life for your family, a home to provide hospitality to others, we need to remember it was all given for a purpose. If we struggle to honor God in our home, how can we be expected to receive further responsibility from Him outside our homes? So today, stand in the middle of the place you call home and proclaim it is all for His glory.
emboldened.net 