阅读经文 

几年来，鸟儿在我们家或我家附近筑巢。有一年，我们看到知更鸟在厨房窗外的窗台上孵化。知更鸟妈妈可以透过玻璃看到我们，起初它对我们的一举一动都很警惕。但它渐渐习惯了我们的存在，我们也能看到它是如何照顾幼鸟的。对知更鸟来说，巢是一个安全的地方，在小知更鸟准备好飞翔之前，巢都是温暖的，不致受到天敌的伤害。

同样，我们需要教会和家庭作为我们的属灵家园，保护我们，满足我们的需要，这样我们才能准备好面对神赐给我们的生活和工作。不幸的是，我们有时会在还没有准备好之前就试图走自己的路。面对友情，我们会做出愚蠢的选择，甚至会触犯法律。我们匆忙进入亲密关系，结果发现自己还没准备好就陷入了恋爱关系。我们想象自己在灵性上已经成熟，不需要基督徒团契，但后来我们发现（为时已晚），我们对这个世界可能向我们提出的道德挑战毫无准备。

家是培养我们亲近神的习惯的地方：读经、祷告、相互问责和认罪。我们都需要基督的保护和供应。让我们不要把属灵家园的恩典当作理所当然。

For several years, birds have built nests on or near our home. One year we watched robins hatch on the ledge outside our kitchen window. The mother robin could see us through the glass, and at first she was wary of every move we made. But she grew used to our presence, and we could watch how she tended her young. The nest, for them, was a safe place, warm and protected from predators until the chicks were ready to fly.

In a similar way, we need churches and families to serve as spiritual homes, protecting us and providing for our needs so that we can be prepared to face the world God has given us to live and work in. Unfortunately, we sometimes try to go our own way before we are ready. We make foolish choices in friendships, and we may get into trouble with the law. We rush intimacy and find ourselves in a romantic relationship before we are ready. We imagine that we are spiritually mature, not needing Christian community, but then we find (too late) that we are unprepared for moral challenges that the world can throw at us.

Home is a place to cultivate the habits that bring us close to God: Scripture reading, prayer, mutual accountability, and confession of sin. We all need the protection and provision of Christ. Let's not take for granted the gift of a spiritual home.