Be the Right Kind of H.E.R.M.I.T

Shy people, depressed people, elderly people, Stay-At-Home-Parents, widows/widowers, new moms, sick people, etc. can all fall into the black hole of their homes. The home can be a blessing and a curse. As women, we are to be “keepers at home”.

What a blessing to be able to care for our loved ones and keep our homes our havens. This article does not negate the need to make your husband and children your first ministry. It is also not addressing those who are not in good enough health to leave their homes.

I just want to make the point that the home can entrap us into a self-centered black hole. We start out by dreading too much time at home, but then it becomes very, very comfortable – perhaps too comfortable. We start to really enjoy those sweat pants and that “mom bun”. Amazon Prime becomes our best friend because that limits our interaction with the outside world even more.

We enjoy not having to face people – critical people, needy people…just people in general. In our homes, we don’t have to be someone we don’t feel like being. We don’t have to face the world and we can hide from so many of the problems that lurk outside of our front door. We sink further and further into isolation. We stop using our talents for the Lord, we stop seeking out people to help and we just truly enjoy the warmth and comfort of home.

Though home can also be a blessing, WE WERE NOT PUT ON THIS PLANET TO BE HERMITS. This life isn’t about us. Though we may not always feel like it, we DO have a purpose…a purpose far greater than the walls of our own home. So be the right kind of “H.E.R.M.I.T”.

H – HELP SOMEONE

I JOHN 3:17 – “But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?”

Take a minute and get your eyes off of yourself; off of your to-do list, your priorities, your woes, your health issues and your finances. FIND someone in your life that you personally can help. Do they have a doctor’s appointment with no one to watch their kids? Watch their kids for them. Is there a class at church that needs to be taught? Consider being the answer to the problem and teach the class. Did someone’s dryer go out? Help raise money for them to get a new dryer. It doesn’t matter what it is or who it is – just HELP. If you have an ability to help them, then don’t turn a blind eye. Be the hands and feet of Jesus. Guess what really hinders this from happening? Staying inside the walls of your home and never even knowing about the needs of others. You can’t be the solution to someone’s problem if you don’t even know about it. So venture out to that church service or Bible study or lunch with a friend and find out exactly how you can help them.

E – ENCOURAGE SOMEONE

“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.” – Prov. 25:11

“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” – Heb. 10:25

Church attendance, yes, encourages us, but one of the main goals of church attendance is to EXHORT (ENCOURAGE) one another. Who do we pass at church or even in our everyday lives that is secretly crying out for one simple word of encouragement? They are everywhere. You just have to look. Guess what makes it extra hard to see people who need encouragement? Staying within the walls of your home. Find someone today who you can personally encourage.

R – REACH OUT TO SOMEONE

Does someone ever come to your mind that you know needs prayer? Here’s a wonderful suggestion – reach out to them and tell them you are praying for them! Check-in with them even daily if you think they need it. Whatever you do to reach out to them, you must be intentional about it. You can even stay in your house for this one. Just send them a text if that’s the best you can do at the moment. However, staying at home and thinking of your own personal to-do list will limit the knowledge you have of those who need to be reached out to. You need to get to know people to know their needs and to be able to effectively reach out to them. Pick up the phone or get in your car or walk next door and reach out to someone today.

M – MAKE SOMETHING FOR SOMEONE

Anybody can make a cute card, make some cookies, make (or even order) a meal, draw a picture or craft something for someone. You don’t have to break the bank. The gesture alone is worth far more than expensive ingredients or supplies. Use what you have on hand and just put some love behind it. Do you know of a new mom or a widow or someone who just had surgery? Make them something! Put some thought and love into it, walk outside of your home, get into your car and deliver it to them. You have such potential to be a blessing to someone today.

I – INVEST IN SOMEONE

Investing in someone goes beyond just helping them or even just encouraging them. This goes way beyond the surface relationship we have with so many people. It’s much, much deeper. It involves planned, intentional time spent with someone in which your purpose is to allow them to spill their heart out. You listen. Yes, there is a time to offer godly, Biblical advice, but mostly just listen. Be that shoulder they can cry on. Check in with them daily to see how you can be a blessing to them. Pray for them. Take them to lunch and listen some more. Invest your time, effort and maybe even your money in someone. Earn your place with them and then ask them tough questions. Pay attention to their countenance. Know them. Invest in them with all of your heart.

T – TEACH SOMEONE

Jesus very specifically told us to go and make disciples. What disciple are you making today? Who are you sitting down with each week to teach the Word of God? The Bible talks about the older women teaching the younger women. Whether you feel old or not, you are older than someone. Are you teaching them? Are you holding them accountable in their Bible reading and prayer? Are you sitting down with them 1-on-1 with the purpose of diving deeper into God’s Word? Sometimes teaching someone is 1-on-1 and sometimes it is teaching a group. Is there a Children’s Church or Sunday School or Bible Study class you can teach? I feel the need to let you in on a little secret – teaching individuals or groups can often become a greater blessing to yourself than it may ever be to others. It forces you to stay in God’s Word and learn. But hopefully the things you feel the Lord is teaching you can also be a lesson for others. You lose out on so many opportunities to teach others if you just stay to yourself or sit on a pew at church and run back to the safety of your home after the last ‘Amen’ has been spoken. We are commanded to make disciples so what are you waiting for?

Every single one of us has been guilty of falling into the easy escape hatch of being a “hermit”. Don’t hide behind your kids, don’t hide behind your shyness and don’t let your lack of desire to face the world keep you in your home 24/7. Your home is a wonderful thing, but we were not put on this planet to stay there. We are here to serve and love Jesus and others. Choose today to be the RIGHT kind of “H.E.R.M.I.T”.

Get outside of your house and: Help Someone, Encourage Someone, Reach Out to Someone, Make Something for Someone, Invest in Someone and Teach Someone.