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A Christmas Home Dedication

© Virginia Marin

Have you ever considered dedicating your home to God? If so, but you have no idea where to begin, this article is for you. People christen boats. The Catholic Church has a service in which animals are blessed. Certain churches christen young children, while others having no specific liturgical service for christening or infant baptism, simply dedicate their children to God. So, the concept of dedicating objects of affection is not new to us. Christmas of 2003, I dedicated my home to the Lord.

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart. And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates" (Deuteronomy 6:4-9).

For well over a year, I had a strong desire to dedicate my home to the Lord. For about the same length of time, I had my my eye on a mezuzah, which is used in dedicating Jewish homes to God. Not being Jewish myself, I was uncertain how to use this object, and if, in fact, I could correctly do so without being disrespectful, in any way to God or to my Jewish friends. After discussing my desire with a Messianic rabbi, and receiving a nod, Christmas 2003 was set for my home dedication.

What is a mezuzah? A mezuzah is a kosher parchment scroll that is rolled up and inserted into a special container. The container is decorated in some manner which is attractive. My mezuzah is carved from olive wood. Like its kosher cousin, it contains a small scroll inscribed on one side with Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21, and on the other side is printed the word Shaddai. A mezuzah is attached to a doorway in fulfillment of the commandment given in Deuteronomy 11:20, "And thou shalt write them upon the doorposts of thine house and upon thy gates." I realize this command was given to the Jews, but as a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, Israel's Messiah, the mezuzah can remind me and all of us that we are bought with a price, and that our homes are dedicated to God.

mazuzah

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