How to cultivate an atmosphere of grace and holiness in the home
"Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words that I command you today, will be on your heart; and you shall teach them to your children, and you shall speak of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up. And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes; and you shall write them on the doorposts of your house, and on your gates "(Deuteronomy 6: 4-9).
As believers, our first responsibility is to love God with all our life and with all that we are; we enter into his presence every day to cultivate an intimate relationship with our Lord. At the same time, we have the responsibility to pass on the knowledge of God to our children and to our whole family, inspiring them to seek God, to have fellowship with him and to learn to minister together as a family, for the glory of God and the advancement of his Kingdom in the place where we are. In order to do this, it is very important that God is the center of our home. Our home needs to be the dwelling place of God, a place that attracts his presence and where he feels comfortable and welcome. We want to cultivate an atmosphere of grace and holiness in the home that invites the presence of God and that provides protection against the attacks and the influence of the evil one. How can we do this? You have to start with the foundation, which is the Family Altar, or the Family Cult.
HOW TO START FAMILY WORSHIP WITH YOURS?
- Repent
if through your ignorance or neglect you have neglected the life of prayer and the teaching of the Word in your home. Ask the Lord for forgiveness, and ask for his help in order to begin, or restart.
- Ask your family for forgiveness
(spouse and children) for having failed them in your office as priest (intercessor), prophet (guide) and pastor. Agree with them about when you can celebrate the family service together.
You can start praying every day 10 minutes together, and then one day a week have a longer time.
The time depends on the age of the children, and how much you are used to listening and participating in family activities.
- Find a book or material that can guide you.
Engage others in decisions about what to do; for example what passages of the Bible to read.
- Do not be discouraged
if you have trouble starting or maintaining a good dynamic. Keep trying.
If not all the members of your family are believers, pray with those who are willing, and ask God to give you creative ways to open the door of your house; like, for example, giving thanks at the table and taking the opportunity to pray briefly for the family, putting verses in different places of the house, playing Christian music, saying goodbye to the children with a "May God bless you", or telling them that you are praying for them in difficult times or in need.
- If you can not pray with anyone in your family, find a prayer partner to pray regularly for your families.