First of all, I was truly deeply touched by the amazing, generous comments I received from so many of you here on my blog, through facebook and by email. I was encouraged so much in my heart to know that my desire to encourage and inspire through out ministry over the years, has indeed been of some use. Thanks for all of you who took the time to write. I have been making a plan this week of what I will do in the future and have taken your input to heart. You can hear more about it on the Youtube video below:
My plan for the blog and webinars and books!
Building is intrinsic to you as a Mother!
"A Wise woman builds her house."
Proverbs 14:1
I love walking the streets in the neighborhoods of old homes. Every Saturday for 8 years found Sarah and I having breakfast and then walking the streets around our turn of the century homes in Colorado Springs. It is also why I love Asheville, NC. All the homes are a little bit unique, different colors of paint, some have turrets, most have porches, but all planned to hold big families-the place to celebrate life together.
Each home came to life from a design created in the mind of the architect, the one who crafted kitchens, parlors, bedrooms, libraries, gardens and all that went into making the home unique. The more thought given to the plan, the more beautiful the home. Home building requires time, thought and lots of hard work. But the result is a great work of beauty and functionality. A great structure never just accidentally comes into being. It is as a result of planning, creating, gathering tools and building materials, and then the hard work of construction, brick by brick, paint in each room, and all that it takes to make a home function.
God designed you to be a builder of a home. But in this case, the home described in Proverbs refers more to a long term heritage, or building a family story--a history of righteousness. A wise woman builds her family, gives life to descendants ahead through her faith and good works, creates a story worth telling for generations to come. To build a godly heritage, a reputation of a community of believers who would live intentionally, morally, faithfully to bring a legacy to each generation is what is implied throughout scripture in home building. Home building is a glory of a godly woman and a capacity God has granted each woman who learns to walk in His wisdom and skill. Yet, homebuilding for a mom is a long term work of construction that takes endless years of work, devotion, and intentionality.
To shape a story, and to build a family happens through the formation of the children of a family: to shape the souls of children with all that is excellent, to fill their minds with truth, to inspire their hearts with the purposes of God, to give them a "taste" of God's goodness and beauty---each of these elements of home building requires planning and intentionality.
Building this specifically requires intentionality, planning, and then long term implementing what you have envisioned.
September is a time of beginning a new school year--whether you homeschool, public school or private school your children. This is the time to plan how you will build this year.
Soul building:
What character qualities do your children need for you to help cultivate in their souls this year? How will you build a legacy of great faith stories into the days of your time with your children so they can have pictures of faith to inspire them as they grow older? How will you help your child learn to grow in serving others and cultivating a heart for the world? What can you do to help your child learn to have compassion on those less fortunate?
Faith:
What passages of scripture will you memorize as a family this year? What books in the Bible will you study? What stories do you want your children to know and understand from scripture? From the biographies of other heroes of faith? How will you implement music and worship songs into the minds and hearts of your children? How will you place prayer as a way of life into your days?
Relational building:
What does each child need to suit his or her personality to know your love intimately? Do they need individual time and attention? Words of encouragement? Unconditional love and forgiveness? Serving their felt needs? How will you build a foundation of security and unconditional love so that they will have reason to know and understand God's love?
Memory building:
What rhythms of life do you need to work on so that your children will have a sense of security and comfort in the walls of your home? Regular bedtime routines? Devotionals? Reading times? Time to play outdoors? Meals together?
Educational?
What areas do you want your children to stretch in this year? Reading? Skills in practicing an instrument? Thinking skills? Writing? Communications? Science and nature? The Arts? Plan specifically what you will do to implement building these capacities into your daily schedule.
Be sure to take time to envision what you are really hoping to build in and through your home this year. Make a very detailed plan about how you will accomplish this, so that distractions will not get in your way and draw you away from your ideals.
In the days ahead on mentoring Mondays, I will be writing about what it looks like to lay the right kind of foundations in the hearts and souls of your children so that they can have moral strength, emotional health and spiritual vibrancy.
What are the hardest or best areas for you in building a godly legacy and a strong community of believers in your own home?