Bless This House

Recently a large India family joined our congregation. They have been a real blessing to our already diverse community. This past Sunday I was invited to bless the new home of some of the family members later during the week. On Tuesday of this week they closed on their new house and before they had moved in a single piece of furniture Major Dan and I were welcomed in. What happened next was quiet and not spectacular but it was special experience that I will never forget. In the next few lines I will simply describe my experience and feelings:

Major Dan and I walked in and were shown around the house. What struck me right away was the careful attention to detail every item from the floor to the ceiling had been carefully thought through. The house was like a jigsaw puzzle with every piece carefully placed and only with all of the pieces together did it look like a work of art. My favorite detail was in front of the main door. The family had convinced a craftsman to word several simple crosses in to metal work rails and awning. The family explained that the crosses were difficult and the craftsman only agreed to do them because he himself was a Christian.

After touring the house we all gathered in the kitchen where I listened as the woman of the house told the beautiful but emotional story of how hard her family struggled to get her to the states. Then how hard she worked to send money home and support her father who was a retired Salvation Army Brigadier (Pastor) who had no pension and depended on his family for support. Now this family for the owned their own house and they truly saw it as a gift from God.

We spent several minutes looking at Scripture passages that had been used to dedicate previous homes they would read first in one language then in I in English. Finally, I read:

Deuteronomy 6 4:9

4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. [a] 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

We gathered into a circle and sang “This is the Day” and Major Dan prayed. In this quiet time I truly had a sense of the presence of God in that house and believe that this family understood what it truly means to write the word of God on their hearts as well as their door posts.