Preparing the Threshold

 

^" Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. ⁵ Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ⁶ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates."   Deuteronomy 6: 4-9

 

 

I took this picture the other day of our little porch.  (This military house has a small porch)  And while looking at it today, it reminded me of a sermon that I heard many years ago called "Guarding the Threshold of your House."  The sermon was about the significance and meaning related to the lambs blood on the door post and why it was so important to prepare the door a very specific way so the death angel would pass by and not kill the Hebrews' first born that evening.  

 

 

Well, one thought lead to another and eventually I pondered on the different ways you can physically prepare the atmosphere of your home for your family. One thing that came to mind that I have done for 15 years now is to play Christian Music in the house when Beloved is on a trip and when  I went out for the day. Coming home to a house where you know praise music has been filling the air was/is so comforting to me.

 

Think I am silly? Maybe. But, I am not the only one that does this! A friend also prepares her home for a Christian atmosphere to be known to all that enter in. Then one day, she went out to do some errands. That evening she wrote me and said, "Our house was broken into today. And, they didn't take anything."  My friend contributed it to their house being dedicated as a home of worship.  And, I believe it! She has her Children put scripture everywhere. It makes me giggle just thinking about what that person thought. I pray he always remembers her home.

 

Anyway, all of this reminded me of some other sweet friends. One day, they sent us an invitation to come to a home -warming party.  They were building a house and the home was all framed up.  It said, "Come pray with us  over our home. Please help us dedicate our new home to the Lord."  They asked everyone to bring a scripture. When everyone arrived, they were handed a permanent black marker so that everyone could write their favorite scripture on the post and beams. (This was just done before the sheet rock went up in the home). They also had a little time of prayer and fellowship -- food, of course!  What a neat idea, huh? I have never forgotten it.

 

So, why am I sharing this? I don't know.

 

  I am just finding that with each military move -- preparing a home atmosphere can  be so different each time we move into a new place.