It starts at home
“By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; 4 through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.” Proverbs 24:3-4
A few years ago my little family began our “show fam” journey. Meaning, we were knee deep in horse tack, feed, hay, practices, livestock and horses. I have a tack and feed room right next to our barn where essential items for animals are stored. In 2021 I had seen the idea of a parent putting a home plate somewhere noticeable for their children to see with the hopes of them remembering, “it starts at home.”
I thought it was a great visual for the girls so I purchased a home plate and stuck it right in front of the tack and feed room. I said the following:
You want better results in the show ring? It starts at home.
You want quality performance in the arena with your horse? It starts at home.
You want better friendships? It starts at home.
The original post I had made on my personal page I also added, “It starts in your heart, how you treat people and yourself … at your own personal internal home plate.”
Below is the photo I shared that day. The base is unscathed by the environmental elements. Hay, feed, dirt and the weight of the chore bearer have not sunken or covered it up. It is clean.
Copyright Jamie Zenteno Ministries 2023
This next image is current day nearly two years later. It has been worn by the weather, the base has been trampled upon by many footsteps including my own and others. Before I dug it up, I believe I had noticed it was below the surface somewhere around four or five months ago but I hadn’t gotten around to digging it back up. In fact, when I went to do so, I had to use a screwdriver to wedge underneath it to have enough leverage to bring it up.
Copyright Jamie Zenteno Ministries 2023
There are a few lessons I can see here. The first, we can have the best intentions but unless we follow through with disciplined consistency it is all for not and forgotten. The second, as seasons of life change it is very easy to push things aside, pile more on and forget the fundamentals. This could even be the core fundamentals of family or what we would like our family to be.
The third, if we want better anything it starts with us at home – no matter how messy the plate might be. It doesn’t have to be pretty and clean all the time. (Hard lesson I had to learn right there too for myself.) That is the beauty of family and our part in God’s story. It is ok to have it look raw, unkept, messy and very real. Then the solutions can be the following and yes, even it takes more than one go around to clean it off.
If it’s muddy, wash it off.
If it’s wet, dry it off.
If it’s dusty wipe it off.
If it’s buried, dig it up.
The verse today is a challenge for us to build our internal homes wisely. I recently had to re-adjust my thinking on some things and the end result was very sweet. I love the support system I have very much. They help me to see things in a better way without being condescending or making me feel bad when I do make a mistake. They’re my safe zone so I can jump back into the game and be mom, boss, friend or partner.
I want to encourage you today to take a look at your home plate and examine what state it is in. Does it need cleaning? If so, what is an efficient manner to go about doing so? If it seems overwhelming, remember we’re not meant to do this crazy thing called life all by ourselves. God will give you the support system and tools you need.
Y’all have a great rest of your week. (Oh and remember to take your allergy medication … because my goodness Texas whatcha thinkin!! LOL)
