The event of a new home may arrive in your life because of a change of circumstances – good or bad. The home may be big or small, bought or rented, a room or a mansion but it is still the place you set out from each day, the place you return to each evening. Asking God to bless your home is a positive action and a lovely way to begin the newest chapter of your life.
When & Why We Should Pray Over Our Home
In our Christian walk, we ask God’s blessing on lives and ministries. We speak of dedicating lives to God’s Service, we consecrate lives and buildings to God’s service. So why not ask God to bless our
A new home can come to us through happy circumstances such as going to college, buying your first home or getting married. But sadly, loss of work or spouse can precipitate the need to find somewhere else to live. As can divorce, domestic violence, fire or flood, etc. To have to pick up the pieces and rebuild a home and life takes courage and tenacity. Taking time to ask for God’s blessing is an opportunity to close one chapter and begin the next in a positive way.
Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loads us with benefits, the God of our salvation
Psalm 68 v 19
And in the Bible we can read of some of those who
- left home – such as Abraham in Genesis 12 vs 1-3
- established a new home – the book of Ruth
- dedicated places of worship – Jacob in Genesis 28 vs 10-19, 1 Kings 8 v22-29
Practical examples of the ways homes have been blessed in very different circumstances:
A New Start
When my husband and I got married, I had been a widow for four years. After the marriage ceremony, my husband carried me across the threshold. This was not just as a romantic gesture but as a definite act of beginning our new life together in what was my old home.
A New Home
When my parents-in-law moved into their new home. After the furniture movers had gone, we had a short time of prayer with them. We stood in a circle, holding hands praying for the blessing of a Godly presence in their home. We asked for protection for the physical home, and favour on their witness to their neighbours.
Cleansing and Dedicating an Area
The author Donna Partow in her “Becoming the Woman of God“ tells of when a particular area of her home became associated with family arguments. She removed all the furniture, prayed for the spiritual cleansing of the room, and re-dedicated
If you want to read Anna Partow’s book you will find more details on the MaryMarthaWisdom BOOKSHELF
How to Bless Your Home
Take some time to think about how and when to bless your home. Do you want to pray for the Lord’s blessing on a particular area, room or the whole place? Is a general prayer for the blessing of God’s presence and peace sufficient in the circumstances ie when praying for someone else’s home? Does the area need to cleansed first by confession of events that have taken place there, and asking God to forgive those involved? When you have given some thought to that you can then
- Choose the day and time appropriate for your time of Blessing
- Decide whether you want/need prayer partners or witnesses to be present
- Select appropriate Bible Verses to read out loud before you pray
- Prepare to break bread together if you feel it is appropriate
Bless Your Home ~ Ideas for Celebrating!
Just as the Children of Israel set up memorial stones to mark a significant encounter with God you may want to celebrate the event in some way. Try these ideas:
- for newly-weds – breaking bread together, selecting a Scripture verse together, making a way to display the chosen verse (wooden plaque, framed print, etc)
- Birth of a child – string a ribbon across a doorway (Entrance, Nursery, etc) and cut the ribbon to mark their arrival home from the delivery room. Hang a framed print of the Bible Verse, Child’s name and date of birth
- Record the event in your journal with as many details as you feel should be recorded.
- Take a photo of those present at your ceremony in front of the relevant doorway
- Hang a memorial plaque over the entrance doorway
Helen Cronin
Helen Cronin lives in the UK with her husband and two furbabies. She is the founder of the gardening website Leaves From My Garden and the website dedicated to studying the Word of God – Honey Bible Study. She is also Editor-in-chief of Mary Martha Wisdom. When not glued to her PC you will find her walking her dogs in the countryside near her home or gardening! Helen gave her life to the Lord Jesus when she was 19 yrs old and has served in a number of ways including administrative roles, speaking at a Bible Conference and latterly through writing.
This is SO good! I love to bless our home and those of my kids and friends. Thank you for this beautiful post!
Thanks for stopping by Donna and for your encouraging comments.
Yes so important for God to approve of and help you with blessing your home. I remember when I moved in to my new place and just needing to be able to cleanse the place and pray over it.
Thanks Sacha for reminding us it’s not just about asking God to bless our homes but to cleanse them too.
Love this post! No matter what type of house we call our home we should always pray over it diligently. Thanks for the lovely reminder.
Thank you Tona! I agree, whether your home is a mansion or a room God can bless us and use us there
Lovely post. My dad became a pastor after he retired. We always had him bless each new home we moved into through the years. And we also dedicated the house to God to use as He willed. It is so important to have God bless our homes. Thanks for sharing
Thanks Yvonne!
This is so encouraging.
It’s very important to bless our home.
It’s such a beautiful read.
Thank you for your kind words, I’m so glad you found this post helpful.
What a wonderful idea! I love this concept of using your home to remind you of God’s blessings!
Thank you Karen for visiting
Yes! Blessing homes is something that is often overlooked. I like the story of praying over the room after a great deal of discord had taken place there.
Thank you Heather, indeed praying over rooms where there has been discord is precious. Praise the Lord we have the power of cleansing prayer!
Such a beautiful post! I love all the practical suggestions and helps you lay out here. Thanks!
Hi Kari. I’m so happy to know that you enjoyed this post. Thanks for stopping by
I’ve been thinking a lot about home lately, as I am fumbling my way through the first draft of a piece and it was a gift to read your words. Sometimes I back away from ceremony or attempts to make moments special but maybe it’s because I really secretly want to live like this. Seeing the sacred and taking time to sit in it. To be grateful.
Hi Chavon. Thank you for your encouraging words. It can be tough putting ourselves ‘out there’ writing what we believe that the Lord has laid on our hearts.
I love this post, I’ve received specific instructions from God about praying over our home before, so I know it’s important.
Thank you Betty! Isn’t it wonderful the way God confirms what we believe He has laid on our hearts?!
This is a brilliant post about blessing your home! I don’t think that I am grateful enough for all the homes I have lived in. My husband is a church minister and our home comes with the job. The houses are quite big but instead of being grateful, I yearn for my own safe place that I can decorate the way I would want. The truth is that we would probably only afford a one-bedroom apartment and instead we have this big house! We do pray a blessing over the different rooms in the house and outside too. I love that you mentioned Dona Partrow, I have one or two of her books!
Hello Karen, I can really identify with you here. My first husband was a minister and we lived in a large house too. I well remember the frustration of not being able to put ‘my stamp’ on it and make it my home. Then a friend shared with me the “Hidden Art of Homemaking” by Edith Schaeffer which helped. The Nesting Place by Myquillan Smith is an excellent resource too.
We moved into our new home back in September and had a time of prayer with my inlaws, giving thanks and asking God to bless it and use it for his glory. I love the ideas you have, especially rededicating certain areas of the home.
Thank you for your lovely comment. I hope you will be very blessed in your new home and it will be a blessing to those who visit too x Helen
What a lovely post on such an important act – blessing your home and cleansing and blessing spaces within the home. So good! Thank you.
Thank you, Pam, for your encouraging comment