There are so many wonderful books out there! This year, I am hosting a once-per-month guest post, written by friends and family, reviewing books we may want to look into ourselves!

This month’s book review was written by my younger sister. She, her husband, and their two little girls live in Missouri. She homeschools her older daughter (Kindergarten), who loves to draw, read, and tell stories. Her younger daughter (2-year-old) enjoys baby dolls, dancing, singing, and finding ways to express her puckish sense of humor. They are involved in their church and have a gift for hospitality, often hosting dinners and park playdates. We are thankful to get together whenever we are able to visit them!

My sister and I both love the book The Lifegiving Home by the mother-daughter duo Sally and Sarah Clarkson. After reading this, I am sure you will want to grab a copy yourself!

From Kami:

Outside the Bible, the non-fiction book you will find me most often re-reading is Sally and Sarah Clarkson’s mother-daughter collaboration, The Lifegiving Home.  While I could give many reasons for reading it again and again, the most obvious is the book’s structure, which lends itself to being re-read on a yearly basis.  After four introductory chapters on the theology and truths behind a Christian understanding of “home,” the remaining twelve chapters are titled after the months of the year.  Sally and her daughter, Sarah, take turns reminding us of the importance of the rhythms that occur within our own four walls every day, year-in and year-out — rhythms of love, beauty, grace, legacies of faith, celebration, family culture, and blessing.

While the words “planned and structured” may not seem to have very home-like qualities at first glance, you will hear these words echoing throughout the chapters of this book, as they are central to the Clarksons’ understanding of hospitality and home.  Hospitality does not happen by accident, nor does a godly home environment happen by chance.  These endeavors take purpose and godly intentionality.  The opening chapter of The Lifegiving Home begins with a memory of the Clarksons’ trip to visit George Washington Vanderbilt II’s home, the famous “Biltmore” in North Carolina.  As they toured the house and learned its history, it became apparent that every nook and cranny of its expansive 178,926 square feet was planned and purposed.  Questions like, “How will I provide a haven for those who enter here?” led to the construction of 35 bedrooms.  Additional thoughtful planning led to the grouping of chairs and tables in such a way that conversation was encouraged.  Reflective musing led to the development of an exquisite library housing Vanderbilt’s personal collection of 22,000 volumes.  While the facts and figures of this house can at first glance seem overwhelming, the beauty of the Biltmore is that it was meant to feel like home to those who entered — not to impress, not to astound, not to humble.

Sally and Sarah Clarkson ask their readers the question, “How can we do this in our own spheres of influence?”  A home need not be large to be intentional.  The re-arranging of chairs to inspire conversation, the ever-present dining room table where meals are shared, the comforting scent of candles, thoughtful artwork, books that spark the interest of guests young and old — these touches can help make our homes welcoming for all who enter.  While none of us likely have a reproduction china pattern commissioned in honor of our family (as the Biltmore does), Jesus reminds us of the importance of even offering a cup of cold water to another because we are His followers (Matt. 10:42).  Jesus’s focus is not on outward fancy details — not on crystal glasses, or silver platters, or sparkling PerrierⓇ — but on our hearts as we offer hospitality intentionally to others in service to Him.  How might you offer hospitality and welcome to someone this week — or this very day?  How might you use the gifts that God has given you, as well as the welcoming shelter of your home, to show another their God-given value as an image bearer?  How might you even arrange a chair or a desk in such a way that conversation is promoted, hearts are welcomed, and God’s love is made evident through the time that you share together?

I encourage you to read the Clarksons’ The Lifegiving Home — maybe even with a friend as you spur one another on toward the gift of hospitality month by month.  (A companion workbook is also available with thoughtful questions, which makes an excellent discussion guide.)  Brew a cup of tea, light a candle, and enjoy planning ways to make your home a place of belonging — a place where Christ is honored and His character is shown through your words and welcome.