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Subdue: To work and rule over something in such a way as to cause it to flourish. Bringing order out of chaos.
“Mama, home was the place where my faith was ignited, my heart was filled with love, my mind was stretched to think profoundly, and my life was filled with beauty and goodness in every possible way. I never knew until now how much work, effort and vision it cost you. Thank you for doing all the hard work, Mama. It was a gift to all of us.”
What deep joy filled my heart as one of my adult children reflected upon this as we were walking together in local parks. I’m not sure they could appreciate it when they were growing up in my home. As I look back over my life as one who was responsible to bring order to my home, to bring harmony in our relationships, to create beauty in the midst of a dark time, I realize that much of my time was like wrestling to tame a wild beast. It was almost never easy, often looked messy from the outside and I was often so very weary and drained.
Yet, the more I understood that I was fashioned by God to bring life, to be a representation of His presence in the world, to see my domain as a place of influence and a place where human beings would be shaped in order to thrive, I could keep going. As long as my vision was clear and growing, my energy to pursue that vision kept coming one day at a time. Now, I see how very much it mattered.
Many have never understood what the point of motherhood was to begin with & feel lost. The demands of home, family life & motherhood presents endless work and challenge, with no end in sight. We can feel lost without a clear vision of why it matters to God’s beautiful and ultimate plan. We lose our personal identity without a sense of purpose. It is way too much work and effort if it doesn’t have an ultimate purpose or bring meaning to our own lives.
But what if God designed home, motherhood, family to be the foundational community upon which society was to emerge from—a place of truth, goodness, virtue, and wholeness? What if we were specifically designed to be caretakers of such a task because of the valued sacredness God placed on women because of His great esteem for them and their potential influence?
As women, one of the defining qualities intrinsic in being made in God's image, is the divine ability to create, to cultivate, to subdue, and to bring order from chaos. We are to take all of the raw materials of our lives and to craft them into something beautiful.
So, as being in His image, creative like Him, when we want to display a small bit of the divine through the beauty of our home, or the love He reflects through our own relationships, it encompass all of the moments of life. We rule over our domains in such a way to have order, rhythms, traditions, anchors in our schedule that provide for this divine reflection through the ways we have ruled over and subdued our own personal realm.
The Spirit of home, stands at the doorways to compel those outside to enter into a place of life, comfort, rest, beauty.
But, you say, "My life is already so busy, I don't have time to add one more ideal."
The dilemma, then, is how to weave beauty, color, celebration into an already busy life, Understanding why we take the trouble to bring His spirit's presence into the moments of our lives gives emotional and spiritual fuel to keep going through all the years.
Today’s podcast is a clear and inspiring reflection of our purpose, our call, our significance to God’s ultimate plan.
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