Build Your Family Culture

We've all heard the saying, "If mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." The saying is all too true. We mothers (and older daughters and sisters!) wield incredible influence over the climate of our family.

God has called us to wisely build our homes.

Building a home is glorious work, but it is work. Hard work. My prayer is to cultivate a family culture that encourages our unique interests and glorifies God.

I have much to learn, but these are four ways I 
have learned
 am learning to build my home.

 Photo Credit

Avoid the comparison trap

Falling into the comparison trap is such a strong temptation!

"Comparing ourselves amongst ourselves" is a sin as old as the world. The internet intensifies the temptation.

The web is a wonderful gift, opening up new worlds and connecting us with new people. But the web can also entrap us. It is easy to read a blog and get discouraged or jealous: someone else will always have more extravagant vacations, more creative family times or a more involved husband.

Comparison is the thief of joy. Comparison tears the family down instead of building it up. If we are to wisely build our homes, we must stop comparing our own family with other families.

No two homes will look alike. That is a beautiful thing! Just like God didn't make all flowers into roses, he didn't give all families the same passions and interests.

Make your marriage top priority

If you have been blessed with marriage, your relationship with your husband is your most important earthly relationship.

Guard it. Cultivate it.

We're all married to sinners. And (poor guys!) so are they. But pray for grace to make your marriage glorious.

Embrace the little things

Just like a child's worldview is shaped from millions of forgotten moments, the tapestry of the family is woven with millions of tiny threads.

My children have a hole in their ceiling with a hook end in it (left by a previous tenant). Part of their going-to-bed routine is jiggling the peg, affectionately referred to as "stirring the soup".

It's a silly tradition, but they love it, and well, it's another thread of our family tapestry.

Purposefully build traditions

In our day of instant gratification and a dozen distractions, it's easy to let family time slide. But we moms have such an incredible opportunity to shape the culture of our family... if we're willing to work at it.

Traditions don't have to be expensive or complicated. Here are a few ideas...

• Put down the gadgets and enjoy dinner together
• Collect your change and save up for a trip to the zoo
• Serve others as a family
• Learn poetry or go hiking or sing operas together

...  build your family traditions!

God placed us in our families for a reason. May God give us grace to wisely build our homes!

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Anna is redeemed through grace so boundless she can't begin to comprehend it...but stands in awe of God's mercy to her! She is a blessed wife and mother of three precious children.

She is a full-time homemaker and believe building a home for God's glory is a high and noble calling. She seeks to capture the daily adventure of this calling on her blog, Feminine Adventures.
There she writes about her passions: Christian womanhood, mothering the little years, homemaking, frugality and natural living. You can also join her on Facebook or Twitter. 

I'm linking up at:  Raising Homemakers, Deep Roots at Home, Women Living Well, 
A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

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