Husbands, you are the gatekeeper of your home. Your presence is more than just the biggest and hairiest homosapien in the home. You guard the entrance of your home. So the question perpetually before you men is this: What am I allowing in my household?
This also means that your attitude, your moodiness, your gruff voice, your furrowed brow, your mindless scrolling, your absence due to tee time with your pals are brought into your home by you. While you must be vigilant over what external things are allowed in––like entertainment and play dates with neighborhood friends––there is a deeper, more fundamental need. You and your disposition are far more potent for good or evil than any external sources.
So, you must not introduce into the atmosphere of your home the glowering clouds of envy. You can’t let in the gremlins of covetousness or lust. You must not be a carrier of the low grade fever of resentment. You are to be joyful, steady, and faithful. What does it profit you to keep out the latest smut from Netflix, but be the source of the stench that comes with being stingy, insecure, or lazy.
This then is a summons to vigilant and merciless mortification of every sin. But killing sin is not the only duty assigned to you. You must not only be gatekeeper for your home, you must be the chief herald of Christ. As the head of your home, you are to ensure that Christ is welcome in your home.
And if Christ is in your home, an entire storehouse of virtues come along with it. Patience, meekness, contentment, and all the other graces land on your doorstep like the weekly haul from the Amazon warehouse. If you’ve been the funnel for sin in your home, repentance today is like opening the window to bring in the fresh air of grace.
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