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Now that fall is here and the days are getting shorter and growing cooler, I’m reminded of days gone by (as in the days before electric heaters and central heat), when the hearth at home was the place where family members gathered when coming in from the cold.
They’d huddle around the hearth, seeking and gaining the warmth of a fire. It was the center of the home where food was cooked. The warmth and aroma of “mom’s homemade cooking” greeted each arriver. It was also where the children learned to read and write, where the girls learned to sew, and where the group singing took place. It was where the stories of Jesus were told and prayers were lifted to God.
Now, your home may not contain a hearth. And we’re no longer living in the past that I just described. But when I speak of home as being a hearth, I’m really speaking of a focus — a focus on home and on the family. Of an emotion. Of a feeling that a place called home brings to the spirit of man. It’s an atmosphere. A sensation. A warmth.
And all of the above should (and can!) be experienced by your family members and extended to all those who cross the enchanting threshold of your home. And that home, that hearth that beckons others to its warmth, begins in your own heart of love.
You and I, as home managers and homemakers, have the job assignment of providing the home happiness. Imagine your husband and child coming home after a hard day to find behind the door a waiting and welcoming wife and mother whose life is overflowing with God’s joy and a happy heart. May that happy woman be you.
And where does that happiness come from? It comes from the Lord — the joy of the Lord is our strength, and the fruit of the Spirit’s joy. It comes from the fulfillment we derive from heeding and obeying God’s high calling to love our husband, love our children, and love our home. Note the formula for happiness as presented in the lyrics of the age-old hymn Trust and Obey:
When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
Are you walking in the light of God’s Word to you as a homemaker? Are you doing His good will as a homemaker? Then happiness is yours, and more than likely, your home is a happy one.
RESPOND
Dear Lord, please show me how to create a happy home. Guide me to books to read, people to talk to, and other tools to learn from. I want my home to radiate Your peace and joy. Amen.
RENEWING RESOURCES 
Who I Am at Home is Who I Am — This printable is a perfect gift or addition to any woman's bedroom or home office.
A Woman's High Calling: 10 Ways to Live Out God's Plan for Your Life—Replace a life of survival with a life of meaningful accomplishment with this book (study guide included) for busy women like you!
REFLECT
Would your family say you are generally more happy or more grumpy?
Greet your family with a smile every morning and every evening this week. Notice how this gradually changes the tone of your home.
REMEMBER
The joy of the Lord is our strength, and the fruit of the Spirit’s joy.
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Jim and Elizabeth George are bestselling authors and national speakers dedicated to helping people live a life after God’s own heart. Together, they have written over 150 books with more than 14 million copies sold around the world. For over 35 years, the teachings and steadfast example of Elizabeth and Jim have helped countless men and women:
Jim and Elizabeth George are bestselling authors and national speakers dedicated to helping people live a life after God’s own heart. Together, they have written over 150 books with more than 14 million copies sold around the world. For over 35 years, the teachings and steadfast example of Elizabeth and Jim have helped countless men and women:
You need wisdom—God’s wisdom—and there’s no need to wait even another second for it. Why? Because God has promised you wisdom.
