Ever find yourself “putting out fires?”  Many times I will find myself focusing in one area of life at the expense of another.  As an example, I might spend a lot of time focusing on my family at the expense of carving out some time to get to the gym.  Or perhaps it is a busy season at work and it impacts spending one on one time with my wife.  Life is a fine balancing act and this is the time of year when many of us start examining how well we are balancing things out.

The Old Testament recounts how the people of Israel were able to balance out their own desires with what God commanded them.  Many times they fell away, and many times they returned to God.  The family worship series has followed along through several of these transitions during the course of our study in 2013.  Today features Joash repairing the temple after years of neglect and invasion.

As we look towards 2014, is your temple in need of repair?  Here are some quick ideas to assist you in the process of self-examination…

• Do the altar fires glow at home?  An old hymn that we sing often at our church is “God Give Us Christian Homes.”  As a metaphor for spiritual health and growth, the author of the song writes about altar fires glowing in a Christian home.  Of course we no longer live under the sacrificial system of the Old Testament, but we all can grasp the sentiment of the song.  Does your family offer up praise, worship and sacrifice at home or have your “altar fires” gone out from neglect.  Much hoopla is made about why churches are losing younger generations.  Blame is often cast on worldly influences, various political agendas, or out of touch churches.  The problem is plain though…families that are out of touch with God.  Perhaps 2014 is the time that you will purpose to repair your temple at home and spend more time singing, praying, and studying with your family.  I hope that my upcoming dinnertime devo series will be a part of that effort.
• Is your earthly temple falling apart? We no longer need a physical temple for worship.  There is nothing special or holy about our church building.  1 Corinthians 6:19-20 tells New Testament Christians that their body is the temple of God.  Is your temple in disrepair?  Taking care of your body is one of the biggest blessings you can give to your spouse, family, and God.  When we allow ourselves to become stressed, fatigued, and sick, due to poor eating, sleeping and exercise habits we sell ourselves short of our full potential.  What a shame it would be to fall short of our potential because we neglect to take care of ourselves.
• Do you honor God with your money? I’m not talking about how much money you give to the church.  We honor God with our money when we manage it well and don’t allow it to become the focus of our life.  Poor money management can impact your health, family, and marriage.  Poor money management can also make you an absentee Christian.  With so many services and items vying for our money, it can be tough to avoid lifestyle inflation in such an abundantly blessed nation.  Getting your financial ‘temple’ in order can provide trickle down benefits for all aspects of your life.

I hope you have a great holiday season with family and friends and that you spend some time reflecting on 2013 and applying lessons learned to make 2014 a great year!  I hope you have great success in repairing your temple.

Don’t miss today’s family worship guide >>> Week 51 – Joash Repairs The Temple