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But may all who take shelter in you be happy. May they continually shout for joy. Shelter them so that those who are loyal to you may rejoice. Certainly you reward the godly, Lord. Like a shield you protect them in your good favor.  Psalms 5:11-12

Home. The word means a lot of things to different people. It can conjure up feelings both positive and negative. What it isn’t, is neutral. We tend to feel strongly about home.

I’ve always desired to make our home a place that generates good emotions and memories. When my husband or kids think about coming “home” I want there to be a longing in their heart, a feeling of warmth and peace. This is not a place in life that you get to accidentally. My husband and I have been very intentional about showing our kids that our love is not based on their performance and they are accepted regardless of their choices. I’m certain that we haven’t always succeeded, and if they are reading this they might even be surprised that this was our intention, but having this as our base got us that much further along the road. Our kids haven’t always chosen the paths we would have for them, and they shouldn’t have. They are living their own lives, not extensions of ours. Our job at this point is to model God’s love for them, to meet them where they’re at.

 Here's the Thing: Our verses today talk about shelter. You don’t need shelter unless you are under attack or in some sort of trouble. As much as we’d like to, we can’t keep our family safe from harm. Jesus told us, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). Difficulty is promised to us, but we can make our homes a safe haven of rest from the world. As we trust in God to handle life’s troubles, we can rest in His peace.

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