Habits of the Household by Justin Whitmel Earley
Week 1: Introduction — The Liturgies of Home
Read the Introduction of Habits of the Household. Key passages to consider alongside it: Deuteronomy 6:4–9; Luke 2:39–52.
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Before diving into any particular habit, Earley sets up the whole framework: the household is a liturgical space, and the question isn't whether your home has rhythms, but whether those rhythms are forming your family toward love or away from it. Let these questions help you sit with that invitation.
Discussion Questions
7 questions1.Earley opens by describing the chaos of family mornings — the screaming, the lost shoes, the frantic rush — and suggests this isn't just a logistical problem but a spiritual one. Does that framing resonate with your experience of family life? Why or why not?
2.The book borrows the concept of "liturgy" from the church and applies it to the home. In your own words, what does Earley mean when he talks about a "household liturgy"? How is this different from simply having a routine or schedule?
3.Earley argues that habits shape us even when — especially when — we're not consciously thinking about them. Where do you see evidence of this in your own household, for good or for ill?
a.What is one habit your family currently has that is forming your kids (or you) in a positive direction?
b.What is one habit — perhaps around screens, busyness, or conflict — that may be forming your family in a direction you don't actually want to go?
4.Deuteronomy 6:4–9 (the Shema) commands Israel to talk about God's words "when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." How does Earley's framework connect to this ancient vision of faith woven into the fabric of daily life?
5.Earley is honest about his own failures and the gap between the parent he wants to be and the parent he often is. How does his posture of honesty about struggle affect your willingness to engage with the book's ideas? Does it make the vision feel more or less accessible?
6.The introduction implies that whoever designs the habits of your household is, in effect, discipling your family. Who or what is currently doing most of that designing in your home — you, your culture, your devices, your job?
7.What do you most hope to gain from working through this book — for yourself personally, and for your family?
Closing Prayer
Lord, we confess that we have often let the chaos of the household simply happen to us, rather than asking what it is forming us into. We thank You that You are a God who cares about the ordinary — who placed Your own Son in a household, a village, a family. Teach us to see our homes as You see them: not as interruptions to the spiritual life, but as the very place where it is lived. Give us eyes to notice what our habits are already teaching our children, and give us the courage to be intentional architects of something better. We begin this journey not with confidence in our own parenting, but in trust that Your grace is sufficient for every chaotic morning and every tired evening. Amen.
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