Do you think, as a Christian woman and wife, I can pray over my house and cleanse it of the evil things that can come into it from the outside world? Or does the husband have to do it as head of the house?
Let’s begin by considering the words of Joshua to the nation of Israel in Joshua 24:14-15, “Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD. And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but AS FOR ME AND MY HOUSE, WE WILL SERVE THE LORD.” With these words, Joshua manifested how that his household was dedicated to serving the Lord. With that dedication, Joshua surely resolved to lead his family in following the Lord and teaching them of the goodness and righteousness of the God that had led them out of the captivity they suffered in Egypt. As head of his house, Joshua determined that his house would be a testimony to the Lord.
Deuteronomy 7:26 says, “Neither shalt thou bring an abomination into thine house, lest thou be a cursed thing like it: but thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it; for it is a cursed thing.” This ‘abomination’ refers to any type of idol a person might have. An idol is anything that we put above the Lord in our affections. In a house dedicated to serving the Lord, there will not be anything there that would distract hearts away from the Lord. Is there anything in your house that holds prominence over the Lord? For many people, their TV is an idol where the family gathers each evening and spends hours staring at the screen, having their minds filled with fantasy and amusement. The TV can have great influence over the adults and children. We allow our children to hear language that we would punish them for using. We allow them to view sexual situations that, even as adults, we should not be witnessing. I am not saying that the TV cannot be used for good and should be banished from the house, but I am pointing out the DANGER of allowing the TV to become an abomination in the house.
Let’s consider Deuteronomy 25:14-16, “Thou shalt not have in thine house divers measures, a great and a small. But thou shalt have a perfect and just weight, a perfect and just measure shalt thou have: that thy days may be lengthened in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. For all that do such things, and all that do unrighteously, are an abomination unto the LORD thy God.” Here is another ‘abomination’ that is forbidden in the home…dishonesty The people were not only forbidden to use different weights and measures, one large or heavy to buy with, and another small and light to sell with, but they were not even allowed to keep these weights in their house. A house dedicated to the Lord is expected to be fair and honest with everyone they meet. To be dishonest with others is to deny the influence of Christ in your life.
I point out these two examples to show that ‘evil things’ that are in the house are brought there by those living there. To cleanse a house of evil things requires that we examine our own hearts, realize what is in our hearts that displease the Lord, and rid our hearts of those things. To pray over a house without considering that the evil in the house is contained without our hearts, is simply wasting time.
The Lord asked Moses in Exodus 4:2, “What is that in thine hand?” What is in our hands often indicates what is in our hearts. What is in your hand? A scandalous novel? A TV remote? A Bible? That which is the most often in our hands will manifest what is in our hearts.
I suggest that you meditate upon David’s prayer in Psalms 139:23-24, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” This is the beginning to getting rid of the evil in your house. (309.6)