So, then, what does it mean to be a home missionary?
To find out, I took both those words and looked up the meanings. Today, I'm using dictionary.com. (The meaning for home is quite lengthy, feel free to look it up.)
Home:
1. A house, apartment, or other shelter that is the usual residence of a person, family, or household
2. The place where one's domestice affections are centered. (emphasis mine)
3. A place of residence of refuge.
4. A principal base of operations.
Missionary:
1. A person sent by a church into an area to carry on evangelism or other activities, such as educational or hospital work.
2. A person strongly in favor of a program, set of principles, ect., who attempts to persuade or convert others.
3. A person who is sent on a mission. (emphasis mine)
OK, so what do we know now? A home is the place our domestic affections are centered. That seems like a gimme, huh? But I took a long hard look at that one. Are my affections centered around my home? Do I enjoy being home, being with my family? Or would I rather be out running around?
A home is also a place of refuge. Ellen White calls our homes to be "little heavens on earth" (AH, page 15). If our homes had a fraction, even a small taste of the peace, joy, and tranquility that's waiting for us in heaven, would we ever be drawn away from them???
Our homes are our bases of operations. A place where we can come home and touch base with He who gives us strength to fight the good fight! It's where we gather our forces, feel the Spirit working in us, so that we can go out into this sinful world and hold true to our principles, hold true to our God!
A missionary is, basically, someone who is sent on a mission. Usually by a church, or a calling from God, or both. They are sent to persuade someone else to convert to their way of thinking. This is a high calling, for anyone. It's a great responsibility! A commission sent by Christ Himself to spread the Gospel.
"Go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."
Mark 16:15 (NKJV)
So, let me ask you this: Who is preaching the Good News to your family? Now, now, I'm not saying their isn't a need for church, for fellowship. But if that's the only place your children are hearing the Scripture, aren't you overlooking your own duty? The commission Christ gave you, to preach the gospel to every creature? And doesn't your own family count?
Too often, we assume that going to church once a week, or even more, is all that we need to do to insure our children are brought close to God, are brought up and trained in Him. But the Bible gives parents, not the church, the ultimate responsibility. The Proverbs say:
"A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is the grief of his mother."
Proverbs 10:1 (NKJV)
"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it."
Proverms 22:6 (NKJV)
Solomon, the wisest of Isreal kings, wasn't speaking to the church, the priests, he was speaking to the parents!
So, let's recap. A missionary is one who spreads the Gospel. A home is our place of refuge, our base of operations, where our domestic affections are centered, our "little heavens on earth." Can we have one without the other? How can we have a heaven on earth, without the Gospel of Jesus Christ? And how can we have the Gospel, if we don't teach it in our own homes, in our own lives?
Now, the question becomes, how do we do that? How do we live our lives, so that we're continuously witnessing not only to the world, but to our own families?
I'm only going to focus on the women's role on this page. Here, I will try to show you what God has lead me to in answering these questions for my family. Some things are basic, some are more complicated. In everything you read on this site, I ask you to pray and ask the Lord to lead you into what is right for your family. No two families are the same, no two homes are the same, but, I truely believe, the basic principles can be adapted for any family.
Until next time!
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