Is the home just about order and outer beauty? My goal is to have a home that reigns a spirit of Love, Joy, & Peace. A place of warmth and encouragement.
In Bible times, a woman was responsible for keeping the hearth fire burning at all times, as it was vital for food, warmth, and light. It was, in a sense, imperative to life itself. To "keep the home fires burning," so to speak, she had to be a keeper at home in the purest sense! Letting her hearth fires die brought embarrassment upon her home, for she would then have to walk through her village balancing a fireless brazier atop her head for all to see, and beg for another woman to have mercy and "heap coals of fire on (her) head." (Romans 12:20)
The phrase "keeper at home" in Titus describes an important role in the preservation of the family, extremely more important than a modern reader might assume. Yet it remains true even today that when a woman turns away from her hearth fires, the first ministry; her service to the Lord lies cold and dark. But when she diligently tends her hearth, she blesses Him by creating the most appealing and treasured spot on His earth - a home away from our true home in Heaven; a warm, magnetic center of life for those He places in her care. Light shines forth from it, and all within are nurtured and content. If we are wise, we will build such a joyous haven!
I sure experienced this lesson the hard way this past year working full time outside the home. I set aside my service to the Lord; which is my family, my home. My focus is back on the Lord, my husband and my children. Our light will shine brighter.
Father, guide me as the "keeper" of my home that I shall keep the home fires burning
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
You are a woman after God's own heart and I recognise my own wish and struggles in what you write.
Post a Comment