Both hub and haven {The missional outpost of your home}

Sometimes my house feels like a train station.  Between our community garden, house-sharing, life-sharing, and hosting a home church here for several months, you never knew who would be here at what time. I love that. In the book Missional Mom, Helen Lee talks about seeing our homes as a “Missional Outpost.” I love this! Lee writes,

[Home] is a place to give you inspiration and direction, as you seek with your family to discover how God wants to use each of you in His grand mission.

Rodney Clapp, author of Families at the Crossroads, writes:

Christians in our society must retrain themselves to see faith as no less public than private … In a real sense, and like the homes of the NT church, our houses must go public. Our call is to live not in private havens or retreats, but in mission bases.

Now, just as each of our secondary callings are different, so will each of our “Mission Outposts” be different, cased on our individual needs, gifts, family dynamics, and temperaments. So, just for fun, I asked each of the women these questions. Perhaps they may be food for thought for you today as well…

1. What kind of missional outpost will yours be? How would you want people to describe your home when they come? What qualities do you most want in your home? What kind of activities do you hope take place in your home? What kind of children do you want to raise there?

2. What gifts, talents and passions has God given you to use for His mission? Which has He given your husband? Which has He given your children?

3. In what ways can you include your children in activities of knowing God, seeking God, and fulfilling His mission to reach out to the world?

4. This week how can you use a mundane task to turn your children’s hearts and minds to think missionally and encounter God in the daily activities of life?

As I reflected on question #1 I realized my desire is to have a home where

everyone who enters feels at home. I want our friends to all feel comfortable dropping by unannounced, opening the fridge if they’re hungry, unloading the dishwasher if they feel so inclined, taking a nap on the couch if need be.

At the same time, I do want our home to be a haven. I want my husband to know He has a refuge, a place to retreat from the pressure and stress of ministry life. I want my children to know there is a place to rest, to sit quietly with a book and just be.  So, I want our home to be both a hub and a haven.  A place where everyone feels comfortable coming, a place where paths cross, a place that is bustling with life and activity. And yes, a place where I can unapologetically turn off the porch light and lay low when my family needs calm and quiet.

I believe this is how Jesus lived. 

Even though He didn’t have a home, Jesus’ very presence was a home. And He was able to make it both a hub and a haven. He was always with people, always surrounded, meeting needs, showing love. And yet He drew away for quiet moments to pray. He felt no pressure and didn’t stress when He couldn’t meet every need. He walked with the Father, and so was able to be both a hub and a haven all at once.

I pray for that for our homes as well. I pray we would not seclude ourselves from the world, protecting ourselves with walls of isolation. And I pray we would also not overcrowd and lose the precious margin from our homes. Let’s pray for homes that are both hub and haven. A bustling center of ministry and life and a sacred retreat for the soul. Amen? Thanks for reading.