My burden here lately has been for a revival of Godly homes in our hour. In a world full of craziness and immorality, as people of God, we must hold fast to the heritage that has been handed down to us. It is our responsibility to "stand in the gap and make up a hedge" against this flood tide of sin and perversion. As Christians, we must be cautious in what we embrace and allow to permeate the walls of our homes. We mustn't forget that we are still a "peculiar people"--set apart for the Master's use. We must allow God to help us to have "renewed" minds like Christ Jesus. We must work diligently to build up Godly homes in this last day. So, what are some things that we should take note of when we are trying to build a Godly home?
The first step in building a Godly home is to make sure that our priorities are in order. God must come first! Each person of the family has a responsibility to do their part to “build a Godly home.” The father is traditionally the backbone of the family So building a Godly home requires a lot of personal commitment and discipline from the father. But if the mother too doesn't make "Godly home building" a priority herself, the father will have a tough time getting the job done alone--(Just as the mom would have a tough time if she were the only one trying to have a Godly home.) Every person in a family is important to have a God honoring home. And while the father sets the tone for the home, it usually falls to the mother to “keep the home” going in the right direction. Mamas, it is our jobs to teach our children in word and deed daily. We are to train them to love God and His ways. Our example in front of them (our walk) often speaks loud than our words (our talk). We must be 100% committed to God ourselves if we want to be a helpmeet to our husband as he leads our home in the ways of God. We need to be willing to do our part — it’s not solely our husband’s job to make sure the family is growing spiritually. There is so much we can do as wives/mothers to help our homes grow in the Lord.
(I do realize each family has different circumstances and every home isn't ideal--Some have lost spouses or wayward children. I believe God gives special grace in those situations if the saved person really seeks to be pleasing to the Lord. Because I myself have no experience in this area and I am not qualified to write about something I do not know about personally, I am choosing to focus this article solely on homes in which all members claim salvation and attend a Bible believing church. If you find yourself in a different circumstance, talk to your pastor or a wise mentor for help.)
Serving God must take precedence over anything else in life. There should be no doubt as to what our goals or desires are as a family. Prayer and daily Bible devotions should be a nonnegotiable part of our lives as well… Putting God first in all things (or making every decision in life with these questions in mind—Is God pleased with this decision? Would God approve of our choice? Does my actions in this situation please God? --Asking ourselves these questions allow us to keep God and His ways priority in our lives...
A truly Godly home takes a lot of work but is so rewarding!
The second step is to be intentional in our actions. Godly homes don't happen by coincidence or accident. They are built through intentional actions. Our everyday decisions or our choices determine the course of our path as a family. Like the post I wrote a few months back, What are you feeding?, if we are constantly feeding our flesh and carnality, we can't expect to have the Spirit of God abiding in our homes. In order for our homes to be Godly, we must feed the Spirit. We must make sure we are creating an atmosphere that God will WANT to dwell in. The Holy Ghost is a perfect gentleman. He doesn't hover over or abide in a home that doesn't make Him welcome. He must be invited into our homes--not only by our words/prayers, but by our everyday actions.
Another step that is crucial to build a Godly home is obedience to the Word of God. We must also listen to the preaching that our pastor and other preachers bring forth. So often, we have this mentality that we can pick and choose what we want to obey or what we don't. In reality, good, anointed preaching is a direct message from God himself. He uses his “messengers” –the pastor/preachers—to talk to us and instruct us in the right paths. We must have a teachable spirit and allow God's Word to stir us and change our hearts—which in turn, will change our actions. In order to be truly “right with God”, we must love His Word and His men... One telltale sign of carnality is when you find yourself growing bored with preaching or becoming disgruntled at the man of God when he gets to close to where you are living. A heart/home that is focused on God will allow the Spirit to challenge, to convict, to reprove, and to change anything in them that is unlike God and His ways.
I adore listening to camp-meetings, special services, revivals, homecomings, etc. on Mixlr and other online resources. Online platforms have become a wonderful resource to allow us to "virtually attend" holiness meetings across the country that we otherwise would never have been able to attend. I have been blessed time and time again as I listened to anointed preaching and I could even feel the Spirit right here in our home while we were listening. However, nothing, I repeat nothing, will ever replace actually faithfully attending a local bible believing church in person. The Bible instructs us to "forsake not the assemblying of yourselves together" for a reason. Our pastor is the watchman of our souls. He can't shepherd sheep that don't stay in the flock. As a family trying to build a Godly home, We must always put high priority on being faithful to our own church. Church night shouldn't roll around and your kids wonder if Mom and Dad are going to go to church. It should be a given! Faithful church attendance IS ESSENTIAL to building Godly homes!!
Another key step (which I have mentioned time and time again in earlier articles), is to create an atmosphere for God to dwell. Music is one area that we have allowed the enemy to steal from us or to distort away from God. Throughout the Bible, there are numerous instances of music being used to glorify and uplift God. The Psalmist proclaimed all through the book of Psalms—I will sing praise!
(Did you know there's a clear connection between the music we listen to and the actions we take or our moods?)
As Holiness people, we all usually adhere at least to the guidelines of “christian” labeled music. We have been taught that secular music such as country, rock, hiphop, pop, etc are detrimental to our walk with God. The Devil too realized this and thus, he, being a crafty serpent, introduced so called “Christian” music that distorted the message of the Gospel and brought in a different tempo/beat (sometimes much like secular music) Because it hid under the guise of Christian music, we have embraced it as acceptable. (Stay tuned for an entire post on this topic in the future)
We must be cautious and wary about what we allow in our homes. If it detracts away from God, or in any way brings glory to self, we must resist that thing. But don't just throw away God's gift of music simply because a lot of music isn't pleasing to God....Instead, seek out Godly music and fill your heart and your mind with songs and praises that bring God glory. Taking this step will help keep our homes on a Godly path. (Again, I highly advocate Holiness Voices Radio – they have a website, an app, and can also be found on the Tune In Radio App. This program is composed entirely of Holiness singers.)
We also must be very cautious of what we allow our eyes and those of our children to view.
One minister told of an visit he made one year to families living along a Kentucky mountain creek bed. They stopped at one shack where a man and woman lived with their children. Their only heat was from a fireplace. They proudly ushered their visitors over to a corner of the dim room, where their two month old child lay. The baby wasn't in a crib, a bassinet, a cradle, or even a pillow lined basket. This child, the family's most precious treasure, lay in a cage made of tightly woven chicken wire.
After a moment of stunned silence, the preacher's curiosity and concern got the better of him, and he asked the parents why they had their little child in this cage. He recounted that he would never forget the answer as long as he lived.
The father said, "We have to have him in this little cage, so that the rats won't eat on him."
It wasn't cruelty that motivated this father when he took the chicken wire and built the cage. On the contrary, like nearly every parent, he deeply loved his newborn son. No doubt he built every bit of that chicken-wire cage with love in his hands and a desperate hope in his heart to protect his child.
Can I ask us as parents a question? What kind of spiritual cages have we built in our own homes?
Is there a cage around technology, or are our children able to view, download, or play anything they want? As parents, we must build a cage there. We must not allow technology and entertainment to ruin our spiritual life as a family.
Every parent will take different steps of cage-building--different rules for their own homes, but one thing is unquestionably true. The Bible says a godly home will "put no evil things before its eyes." Because of the vast cesspool of evil things that is being broadcast via technology, there simply cannot be a discussion about building Godly homes without including a caution of technology. While technology is extremely useful as a tool or a resource, when it becomes mindless entertainment, it becomes a danger to building up Godly homes.
Psalm 101:3 KJV— I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.
Does our children have unhindered/unfiltered access to internet? Does Dad have godly boundaries in place himself? Does Mom? Are we cautious in what we watch? Do we view everything as if Jesus himself was sitting there with us? Would we read what we do if Jesus was reading it too? Do we respond to people with Christian kindness and love? Do we "do unto others as we would have them do unto us"? Are we careful not to get caught up in tale bearing, backbiting, gossip, and drama? Are we being busybodies in other people's affairs? Do we give folks the benefit of the doubt or do we always think the worse of people? or... Do we have to say we need God to help us work on some of these areas?
Another area in which we must be cautious is in our close associations or friendships. If We are wanting to have a godly home, we can’t hang around with carnal people who have no desire to grow spiritually. Close associations or friendships often either help us or hinder us in a relationship with the Lord. People that do not understand the ways of God or the personal commitment it takes to have a Hodly home will see all those things as unnecessary and foolish. That is why it’s so important to be involved with people that will build you up encourage you and help you grow spiritually. It is a wonderful idea to find someone older than you, or at least more spiritually mature, to help you and your family as you endeavor to grow in the Lord. They may never say a word or give any type of advice directly, but by being around people whose focus is solely toward the Lord, you will glean such wisdom and encouragement by their example. All throughout the Bible, God cautions us about close alliances with those who do not hold our same values. We must find close companionship with those of like precious faith.
Proverbs 27:17 KJV—Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.
What kind of discussion could we have with our families about making some changes in our homes to become more Christ like? What could we do to help us grow spiritually as a family? What routines could we incorporate into our lives that would promote righteous living and foster a greater love for God, His Word, and His men?
This is being careful. This is being intentional. This is building a Godly home.
You and I may not be able to do much about the morality of our nation as a whole right now, but every one of us can take control of our own homes. We can teach our children the statutes of the Lord. We can raise a generation up that know God for themselves!
And that's exactly what the Bible has commanded us to do.
Deuteronomy 6:7 KJV—And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
And, yes,
When we make building a godly home a priority, it will cost us upfront; We'll have to be cautious what we watch, what we listen to, what we enjoy, and we may not be able to partake in as much as we used to. We may have to lay down some things and we may have to start doing other things that we didn't use to do. Some folks (even other family members) may not understand this and may think we are just weird or trying to be holier-than-thou" but having God in our homes is worth every bit of criticism or persecution that may come. The rewards of having a Godly home are immeasurable... By following God's guidelines in every area of our lives, we can be sure that God will honor it!! He will guide our steps and direct our paths. He will enable us to have wisdom and knowledge on how to handle the difficulties of life. We can trust Him! His ways always work!! We can have peace, joy, and happiness knowing that our ways are pleasing to God Almighty.
Let's work hard and do our part to prepare a place in our homes for God to dwell.
Remember, revival must first start at home...
From my heart to yours,
-Tiphanie❤️
Joshua 24:15 KJV—-And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve…..but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
