Lent Day 3 - How's Your House?

"As for me and my house we will serve the Lord."




Joshua 3:5

“Joshua said to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.’”

Consecrate:

• to set apart as holy
• to devote to sacred or serious use

Leviticus 20:7-8

“Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God. Keep my decrees and follow them. I am the Lord, who makes you holy.”

Was Joshua telling the people that they could actually consecrate themselves? No. In Old Testament times there was a process for consecrating someone or something to God. Specific activities took place as part of the protocol. Today it is a matter of taking our hands off ourselves and allowing God to work this change in us. It is a choice. Just as the children of Israel could choose to complete the rituals of consecration or not, we can choose to allow God access to our hearts to ‘make them holy’ as he promised.

When we allow ourselves to be consecrated it is an acknowledgment that we belong to God and are here for his purpose. We lay down our own agendas and present ourselves to him as soldiers of his kingdom ready to do battle. Part of that is understanding that he is not concerned with our social status or what groups we may be part of. He is not concerned with our appraisal of the work he gives us. He is unconcerned with whether we believe our job to be worthy of us. He simply calls us to obey.

Consecration means understanding that anything he calls us to do, any opportunity he provides, any person he puts in our path is a holy assignment. We don’t get to pick and choose. We set ourselves aside for a sacred use and trust God to glorify himself as we obey.

What in your life needs to be consecrated to God:

-yourself

-your family

-your home

-your material possessions

-your job and place of business

-your leisure time

Consider making this an active initiative. You’ve heard of prayer walking through a neighborhood or community? Let’s get a little more personal.

Find time at home when you can be alone or at least have a little quiet time to yourself. Walk through each room of your home and dedicate it to God’s use, asking him to bless it. Pray for each person who resides in your home, especially as you walk through bedrooms. Ask for God’s blessing in specific ways. Pray for the things you know that person needs and ask God to be generous and bountiful with his blessings. Ask for God to help you be the person he needs you to be in your home.

Do the same thing at work. If you can go early before others get there, great. If not, ask God to allow you some quiet moments in each place to pray for his blessings on your business and your co-workers. Be as specific as you can when you pray and ask God for opportunities to share him with your colleagues. Dedicate yourself to being God’s ambassador to those around you.

If you or your kids are involved in extra curricular activities do they same with them. If you’re standing on the sidelines, pray for the coaches and the players. Pray for the parents and families you see there. You may know nothing about them but God knows exactly what they need. Ask him to bless each person there, individually and collectively.

If you want to expand that, walk through your neighborhood and pray for your neighbors. Drive through Marianna and pray for the residents and businesses. Be specific when you can and leave the rest to God. Dedicate our city back to God and yourself to making it a town of believers.

Write down your thoughts as God speaks to you while you pray, and don't forget to write down what he does in your life over the next few weeks. Use this to share with others what Jesus means to you, and what he can mean to them. 


I am praying for you. 


Sherri