Lord, you are my secret hiding place,
protecting me from these troubles,
surrounding me with songs of gladness!
Your joyous shouts of rescue release my breakthrough.

Psalm 32:7 The Passion Translation

This blog is part of the Five Minute Friday community and part of the writing challenge on showing love and honor. These two combined nicely. (Love when that happens) Please join us as we write for 5 minutes on a word provided. Don’t overthink it. Simply take it and run.

GO

Where’s home?

As a kid, the reference to home was often confusing. My parents referred to the United States as ‘home’ for when we would come on furlough to visit the churches and raise our support as missionaries to Latin America. I longed to go back home to Costa Rica to my home church, friends and familiar surroundings.

This concept got me thinking about the fact that HOME is really not a PLACE but a safety net of warm relationships where you feel loved, accepted and cherished. It is not picture-perfect or static. It is dynamic yet safe. If you did not have it growing up, then create it.

After my first husband moved to his eternal home (euphemism for dying) our house no longer felt like HOME because he was not there. I could have stayed in that lonely place.

I thank God that I met Rodney who also was feeling like his house was not a HOME since the death of his wife. Together we have made a new HOME – a place where we know we are loved.

In the evening, as we stop to express our gratitude about the best part of the day, we say – “Welcome HOME – it’s more than just a PLACE.”

Here’s the challenge to you.

Active Expressions of Love and Honor:

• Create a safe haven where you are loved and appreciated by doing the same for someone else.
• Surround yourself with things that evoke warm memories
• Let go of the expectations that keep you stuck in the false illusion that there is a picture-perfect place called HOME
• Laugh often – especially at yourself
• Invite others to share your space even when the house looks ‘lived-in’

Prayer

Thank You, Lord, for the gift of relationships that make me feel safe and secure. You are the originator of all love and it’s only in You that we can find this place. Allow me to expand my boundaries to include others and embrace them in the warmth that You have shown me. Thank You for the laughter that lifts our spirits and allows us to enjoy Your presence in the midst of chaos. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

STOP

Please join a vibrant community who blogs for five minutes on one word every Friday by clicking here.

This blog is also part of the #write28days challenge that is being completed slowly in March because life happened. Love the freedom to find my own place to call home and there be able to fulfill my destiny.

Author, speaker, corporate trainer, ordained minister and Hope Catalyst, Karen Sebastian enjoys sharing her rich life experiences with others – engaging them in adventurous discoveries of the beauty of hope in a dark, cloudy world. Her books will inspire you to embrace hope no matter what you are going through. As a caregiver and widow she took brave steps forward to fulfill God’s calling on her life. She has now remarried and enjoys her new hubby and spending time with their children and grandchildren. To increase hope and improve relationships with yourself and those that you love, check out her Facebook page – The Power of Hope.