Being a Keeper of the Home...What does that mean anyway??

So we all hear that we are called to be "Keepers of the Home" but what does that mean and how do we do that??

First, lets remind ourselves of what Titus 2 tells us...

"The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; that they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed."

Titus 2:3-5

That passage is so powerful and is so stock full of direction and inspiration for us as wives and mothers. I think though that the last 8 words are the most important. "That the Word of God be not blasphemed." Have you ever thought that you are a blasphemer? I certainly would not consider myself one. I think of people like Judas and King Herod and atheists when I think of blasphemy, but the reality is, if you are not living and doing what God has called you to do, you are spitting in his face. YIKES!!

Y'all, I will be very honest with you. This is extremely difficult for me. I am one of those people that has regrets, worries about everything, is always looking back to what I could've done differently and looking ahead to the next phase in my life. I rarely am able to live in the here and now (which by the way is something that this scripture has taught me to do). When my kids were little, all I wanted them to do was move on to the next milestone. The second they started walking I was ready to potty train, and as soon as they were potty trained I was searching for a preschool. I have such a tough time just being. Now that my kids are older I am ready for a do-over. But guess what? Life doesn't offer those. We can't go back and change anything just as we can't skip the parts of our lives that we want to hurry through. But what we can do is serve the Lord through our families each and every day without ceasing in order to honor God...so "that the word of God be not blasphemed."

How does that fit with being a keeper of the home?? Well, I keep my house cleaned, my kids are always well dressed, I even read them a bedtime story at night and show my husband attention every now and then. So doesn't that mean that I am being a Keeper of my Home? The first thing I had to do to figure this out was have myself a good old soul searching.

Daily chores are certainly part of keeping your home. But where is your heart while you are busy in your day to day activities? That is what defines you as a keeper of your home. Are you singing praises to the Lord that you have a family to take care of or are you cursing your husband because he never puts his shoes away?? You can read a bedtime story to your children but are you whole heartedly purposing to teach them what is right, to instill values in them that they will take with them as they grow? Or are you, like me so often, just trying to get through the story so that you can get that kitchen cleaned?

This is difficult, I know, but the first thing I had to realize to get on this track was that my HOME was not my HOUSE. Does that make sense?? So where is HOME you ask?? Home is anywhere my family is. If we are on vacation, HOME is our condo/hotel/RV. If we are at church, HOME is our pew. You think I am crazy?? Let me explain...keeping your home is very different than keeping your house. Keeping your home comes from your heart. It is a desire, a purpose to take care of those we love. It is not the day to day chores, it is how we do the day to day chores. If you have the most spotless house in the neighborhood, but you're mad that you had to clean it or won't let your kids back in once it's clean (don't lie you know you've thought it), you are keeping your HOUSE but not your HOME. Get it??

So how in the world can I call a church pew home?? Well, because to me, my home is wherever my family is. Right now we are living with my parents while we are building the house we plan to live in for the rest of our lives. Does that mean that because I am in my mother's house that I don't have a home to keep? Not at all. I keep my home here just as I would anywhere. I am still cooking supper and enjoying dinner with my family at the kitchen table. Sometimes with my parents joining and sometimes just us. I still read to my children at night and talk with them about their day and pray with them. My husband and I are still having lunch together and spending time just the two of us. I am still keeping my home even though I don't have a house...does that make any sense at all? Now, let me say this. Every choice we make, makes it easier or harder to keep our homes. Does living with my parents make it harder to keep my home. YOU BETTER BELIEVE! Why??? Because all I want to do is sit in the kitchen and chit chat with my mom and sister. My mom and sister also exercise every evening together and I want to join them...BUT I CAN'T. I have to remember what my top priority is. Its my family. Whether I want it to be or not, God has called a woman to be the keeper of her home, with her family as her top priority. Period. Like it or not its what scripture says.

So now that we know what HOME is...What do you want your home to be?? What does it look like. And no, I'm not talking paint color! For me, I want my home to be a refuge from the outside world. A safe haven for my family, that sanctuary that you can come to and be secure even from the worst situations. Is it that way all of the time? No, absolutely not, but I desire it in my heart and I have purposed that I will create that for my family, at all costs. What is it to you??

Ponder on that this week and lets meet back here next Wednesday morning to discuss what our homes are to us and how we make them what we want them to be without going crazy...And coming soon, the Mom debate...how much time do you have to spend in your HOUSE to keep your HOME...cause I'm not trying to be imprisoned in there y'all!!! Stay tuned for that fun!!

BLASPHEMERS y'all...think about that because that is what just did me in!!

Post! Post! Post!! I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this!! See y'all next week!!