Building My House

Proverbs 14:1

The wise woman builds her house,

But the foolish pulls it down with her hands.

 
For over 25 years, in addition to my regular Bible reading, I have been reading a Proverb a day in my quest for spiritual wisdom.  I have been so blessed to continuously learn the Lord's spiritual view on all mankind's problems.
 
I am daily challenged as I seek to be all the Lord desires for a woman who proclaims Christ as her Savior.
 
Todays chapter begins with an admonition I have always loved. This one simple verse reaches into the deepest, darkest corners of my heart and reveals  the cobwebs of confusion and the debris of disobedience.
 
The Hebrew word for house is actually translated into many different words in the Old Testament.  Here are a few of the various words used and the number of times used in the Authorized Version.
 
house 1881 times
household 54
temple 11
prison 16
family 3

We moms understand that "house" isn't just aa physical structure, we are talking about the people enclosed within those walls.  

These words always challenge my heart deeply as I evaluate my life as a Mommy.

What am I doing as a wife and Mom that will  make the people within the walls of my home a captive or a king, a prisoner or a priest?

How am I building?

(from Bing Images)

When I think of building, I think of bricks.  I have never lived in a brick home, but for some reason, Ithis verse makes me imagine adding bricks one by one, slathering on the mortar and lining up the bricks perfectly.

That is the same workmanship we need as we build into the lives of our family members.  If we are careless, the walls could come tumbling down.

We must build on a firm foundation.

I Corinthians 3:11

For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid,

which is Jesus Christ.

We start with salvation in Jesus Christ for the foundation of our homes, each family member responsible for pouring their own foundation, then adding only things that are fit for heaven.

Believers do not stand in judgement for their sins, because the Lord Jesus bore them upon His body on the tree, but they will stand in judgment for their works done as a believer.

A fire will be set to the works of each believer's life, and anything that was unfit for Heaven, will burn as quickly and completely as wood, hay and stubble.  Anything that was done for the Lord's glory and according to the Lord's Word will come through the fire purified, as gold, silver and precious stones.

In other words, my life as a Christian mommy will undergo the Lord's fire.  The lives of my husband and children will undergo the same fire. 

Since I homeschool, my "year" always begins in September.  As I pray about my kids, schooling, my health, and the hospitality my home provides, I am seeking to be a wise woman who uses wisely builds on the foundation of Christ, and doesn't tear down my home.

Will make words, actions, priorities, activities and teachings survive the fire?

I am thinking of two lines from a poem by C.T. Studd...

Only one life,

Twill soon be past,

Only what's done

for Christ will last.

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