It means different things to be “at home” these days. A home now can be an office or a school or a gym as well as a dwelling place. That makes it feel different when you are living “at home.” That’s why it is still important to have a specified space for various activities. I liked to close the door to my “office” when I was done working from home and then move to my recliner for my retreat when my workday was done.
Since church services are still very much online events, the home has become a church as well. Think about ways that you can set aside a particular place for viewing videos and live streams of worship or spaces where you as a family can gather for Bible reading and prayer.
Our homes have been much more adaptable than we thought possible, and we have become more adaptable than we might have envisioned too. For this we need to thank and praise our God. I think of this verse: “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21). Even though it has been a challenge within the walls of our homes during these pandemic days, we have seen firsthand what God has been able to do in these circumstances that is beyond what we expected. People have talked about having more time to talk to one another and enjoy each other’s company. That’s God at work in our relationships. I have been doing a lot more praying than I did before. That’s God at work in my faith. I have noticed that I have become more grateful for the small things that my house affords, like a bath or a shower. That’s God at work in my outlook on life.
We might feel like homebodies these days, but maybe that is where God wants us to be somebody that lives for him in unique and inspiring ways. Wasn’t it Jesus who said, “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.” (Matthew 6:6)? That might be just what “being home” means for you right now. And that’s OK.
