The word “homemaking” once prompted visions of a house I’d inhabit with a hoped-for husband and children. I imagined joyfully making that home, reveling in its stability while I loved a godly man and we watched our children grow.
Instead, I’m now in my 30s, single, and living with three other single women in a rented house in Washington, DC—a city known for transience over permanence. I still desire the essence of those earlier dreams. I believe Scripture recognizes the unique role of a woman in keeping a home for her family (Prov. 31:10–31; Titus 2:4–5), and I earnestly hope to partake in that good work. Yet I’ve also learned that for the Christian, “making a home” can happen across contexts and seasons. Details vary, but several truths about homemaking remain constant.
Homemaking Points to a Better Home
One of the first things God did for the first man was settle him in a particular place—and it came with provision and responsibility. The garden overflowed with abundant food and beauty, yet Adam also needed to work and keep it (Gen. 2:8–9, 15–17).
Though their sin meant Adam and Eve had to leave the garden, God’s promises of redemption still included elements of home. From his covenant with Abraham for the promised land (Gen. 15:7, 17–21) to his command to Israel to seek the good of their captors’ city (Jer. 29:4–7), God has always cared about the places where his people live and work.
Then, astonishingly, God came and made his home among us (John 1:14). This was but a preview to his dwelling with us forever in a redeemed home and city that he even now prepares for us (John 14:2–3; Heb. 11:16; Rev. 21:3).
‘Making a home’ can happen across contexts and seasons.
The homes Christians occupy now foreshadow that eternal home, and we can make and steward them to point to our future hope. Whether it’s a dream house shared with a family or a temporary studio apartment, every dwelling can be a signpost of our truer home to come.
My current house, though not what I once envisioned for myself, overflows with tastes of coming glory, from my housemates’ joyful laughter to the comfort and safety the house provides. When our homes aren’t exactly what we expected or desired, we can still “dwell . . . and cultivate faithfulness” (Ps. 37:3, NASB), giving thanks for God’s good provision now even as we orient ourselves and others toward that coming, lasting city.
Homemaking Thinks of Others
Whatever your circumstances, you can make your home—house, apartment, condo, or otherwise—with a vision for sharing it. A spouse and children may not share your home, but someone ought to. The apostle Paul instructed believers to show hospitality (Rom. 12:13; 1 Pet. 4:9), and Scripture teems with examples of Christians eating together and opening their homes.
Are you making your home with this mindset of generosity? Have you considered that making your home comfortable and beautiful could be a means of loving those who come in?
How Christians prioritize this aspect of a home will vary, but it’s worth intentional thought. Edith Schaeffer wrote in The Hidden Art of Homemaking, “I am sure that there is no place in the world where your message would not be enhanced by your making the place (whether tiny or large, a hut or a palace) orderly, artistic and beautiful with some form of creativity, some form of ‘art.’”
Your home doesn’t need to be professionally decorated, but does it welcome people? How might decor and accents encourage conversations? Can people of varied ages and seasons relax there? My housemates and I love pictures and artwork that feature Scripture, literature, and beautiful scenery. We have a stack of children’s books we hope visiting families can enjoy. We try to use colors and candles that convey warmth and invitation.
In preparing our homes well for those who visit them, we can offer guests small foretastes of the place Jesus prepares for those who love him.
Homemaking Makes the Most of What It Has
Unlike many homes in Washington, DC, our house has room for a long dining table. It also has ample backyard space, a true novelty here. My housemates and I have become the hosts who specialize in group dinners, bonfires, and open house gatherings because of how our space is uniquely equipped for them.
I know a house of single men who have fruitfully used their location across the street from our church by hosting a gathering every week after Wednesday Bible study. Students, visitors, and new members have commented on how those gatherings helped them meet Christians or grow friendships.
Consider what your house might be particularly suited for: Sunday lunches? Outdoor games? One-on-one conversations? Don’t be intimidated by what other people are doing and think you must copy them. Your home has gifts to offer too.
Don’t be intimidated by what other people are doing—your home has gifts to offer too.
One of my housemates loyally tends a small garden she put in our backyard. Her diligence over that little plot reminds me of faithful stewardship. We know we won’t live in this house long-term, but her work cultivates good fruit while we do.
I still hope to keep a house where I might nurture a family of my own. But I’ve also learned to cherish the sight of sunlight streaming through the windows of my rented house, of church youth group girls laughing on my hand-me-down couch, and of a housemate discussing Jesus with her non-Christian coworker. These, too, offer refreshment for me and others on the journey toward our eternal home.
The Gospel Coalition