How to Have Warmth: Biblical Hygge
Hygge (pronounced as “hoo-guh”): Is invoking or fostering a sense of coziness, contentment, and well-being
Warmth in Hygge is about adding physical comforts, safety, and contentment in your life to help find more happiness and peace around you. There are five main parts of Hygge: comfort, togetherness, simplicity, warmth, and presence. The Christian lifestyle should be focused on all of these. So we will cover one of the five parts of Hygge per week for the month of February to learn how these concepts should be found in the lifestyle that a Christian leads. Last week we covered the third part - Simplicity. This week we will be learning about - Warmth. If this lifestyle is one that you want to learn to embrace in your walk with God, then continue on.
#1. Warmth in Abiding:
Bible Verse: John 15:4 - “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.”
In the Danish culture having a cozy environment is key in this Hygge lifestyle. Denmark is know for its long, dark, and cold winters. And those winters are why they try so hard to create such a warm and cozy home. It lifts their mood and contrasts the weather outside. Isn’t that how our relationship with Christ should be? Our relationship should be this strong contrast to the world around us. It should be like a warm and safe house, in the middle of a cold dark night. It should be that way to increase our own faith, but also to become a beacon to others, welcoming them to learn more. In the Christian lifestyle we must have our own personal relationship with God, that doesn't henge on being taught by someone else or even through having someone attend church service with you. We should have this kind of relationship with God outside of the church building during the week. It needs to be ever growing, and shared with those around us that are still in their own dark storm of life. Our overflow of time spent with God, will be the beaconing call of warmth to those in our lives. So we must strive to have that relationship with God. Not just any relationship with Him, but one where we ABIDE. Abiding conveys the idea of being SO apart of something that it is engrained in your every being and characteristic. Is our relationship with God one that Abides?
Ideas for Finding Warmth in Abiding:
Study God’s Word more! How can we abide in Him, if we don’t abide in His Word continually?
Pray more! Prayer is our main avenue of communication to God. How can we expect to grow in a relationship with someone if we never talk to them. We understand this when it is dealing with worldly friendships, but it’s the same with God also.
Start your day with 5-10 minutes of uninterrupted God time. That could be in His Word or in prayer. SHOW Him that you are putting Him first even in your busyness.
Memorize Scripture. The Bible is full of Words that are directly inspired and breathed out from God, having those Words on your heart will help you focus more on Him instead of the world.
Set goals for growing in your relationship with Him! How can you know if you are getting off the path, if you don’t have a goal to begin with?
Write out your prayers to God in a journal. This changes up your prayers, and might help you be more open and honest, rather than falling into a repetitive motion.
#2. Warmth in Service:
Bible Verse: 1 Peter 4:9-10 - “Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.”
The Danish people strive for welcoming people through physical comforts, like cozy fires, fuzzy blankets, or even fresh baked bread. They also love setting up their houses in ways that will be welcoming to all. They take time in thinking about WHO they are hosting, and WHAT they might need or want. They take the extra time to get to know the people around them, and they strive to look for ways to serve them to the best of their ability. Do we put more effort into what we think that others will think of US when they come over, than we do into thinking of the ways that we can serve THEM when we have them over? Are we making our home as welcoming and inviting as possible? Do we think about any allergies they might have? Do we think of seating or if they don’t eat certain foods? Do we put effort into making conversations centered around others instead of around self? Are we truly serving others?
In the Christian lifestyle, we need to strive towards a life of service. These lifestyles are very similar. We as Christians should be welcoming others into our houses and lives. We should be centering the conversations on others. We should be thinking about the things others are going through, and thinking of ways to get around those struggles. We should be thinking of allergies, or physical limitations of those we invite over and plan accordingly. We should also be planning meals, drinks, or foods around THEIR preferences instead of our OWN. We need to serve others through sacrifice. Our time spent preparing or planning. Our time spend making our homes inviting. When we put others first, and give them a safe and welcoming space, they will open up easier and come again. And isn’t that what is needed most? We need to have open relationships with others, so we can allow for more Christ talk. We need to show others who Christ is through our service to others.
Ideas for Warmth in Service:
Start a journal of any notes about the people around you that you want to remember (example: any least favorite foods, any allergies, any favorite things, etc.). The idea of this is to keep track of anythings they like or dislike. All this information can be used when you invite them over or give them a gift.
Get your house ready NOW for inviting others over. Think about decluttering NOW so your space can be quickly cleaned up for a last minute invitation. Don’t let clutter stop you from fellowship! Remove the barriers stopping you from inviting others over.
Keep the events simple. Invite others over for a hot drink and puzzle night. Keeping things simple allows for more conversation.
Challenge yourself to invite others over who you normally don’t invite over. Expand your circle. You should be getting as close to everyone and not just a couple people.
If you can’t afford to have other people over for a meal, think about a potluck styled meal, or even just a dessert night. Simple is best for food.
Be a good host, be present in others needs. Watch their body language, and adjust accordingly.
Have grace for yourself. We will not be perfect at having others over if we haven’t done so much before. Like anything it takes practice.
#3. Warmth in Hardships:
Bible Verse: Romans 5:3-4 - “Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,”
In the Danish culture, they have the hardship of long, cold, and dark winters. They strive to find the best of the situation, by making their lives ones of contrast to their hardships. Isn’t that how we should be as believers in God? We should have the most hope and contentment out of anyone. But how can we have that hope and contentment? We must first have a strong relationship with God, one where we spend personal one on one time with Him daily. That time spend in His Word, will then start overflowing into our actions and thinking. The more time we spend with God the less we are thinking of our own lives or problems. Yes, there are times that we need to think through the situations that we are going through, but what I am talking about is not letting those hardships consume you. Not letting it take up all of your time. Not letting it take up all of your thoughts. And not letting it seep into your relationships with others. What we should be letting consume our thoughts is God. We should be letting Him be our main thoughts in the day. We should be letting our relationship with Him seep into our friendships and relationships with others.
Ideas for Finding Warmth in Hardships:
In the moments of hardships, take a pause for three minutes, and find things that you are grateful for.
Start an evening gratitude journal, this will start getting your brain out of the negative rut that it can easily slip into.
If you ever find yourself asking “why me” to a hardship, stop yourself. Instead, ask yourself “What lessons can I learn from this?” Don’t focus on self, focus on how this will push you towards your end goal of Heaven.
Start participating in acts of service. You can start small, but the idea is the more you help others, the less time you have to over think about the hardships that you are dealing with.
Acknowledge the hardships, but don’t let your mind dwell on them. What we dwell on will consume us. Choose to dwell on God instead.
Pick one activity that you enjoy (drink tea, crafting, walking, etc) and do it at least once a week with the purpose of praying for things you are grateful for the whole time. Not letting your mind drift. Use your passions but give it a Spiritual focus instead of a worldly one.
Conclusion:
Bible Verse: Matthew 5:16 - “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
Just like with anything in life. When you first start trying to be more faithful or grateful, it takes work. It is like a muscle that needs strengthen. We must first strengthen our own walk with God through working on our relationship with Him. Then we must work on our relationship with others both believers and non believers. We shouldn’t expect to wake up having a Biblical Hygge type warmth if we have not been working towards it all along. We must start NOW by retraining our thinking patterns. Are we grateful in all ways, at all times in the day? Are we spending more time and thought with God than in the world? Are we sharing from our overflow of faith with others? We cannot expect to actually teach others with conviction if it has not touched us first, our conviction should flow into our hearts first before it can overflow into others. A Biblical Hygge type Warmth must come from working on getting our thoughts to one that is focused more on others and God than on our own problems and lives. It will not come quickly, and we must constantly make efforts to do so if this lifestyle is our goal. We must make plans, follow through, and put others first. A Biblical Hygge Warmth will be one that spread to everyone, not just those you are comfortable already with. Show others your warmth, that you have gotten from your time spent with God. Embrace the lifestyle of being thoughtful to others and to God, and you will start to gain more Biblical Hygge Warmth with each day! Be the warmth, and be the light!
Ideas for How to Have Biblical Hygge Warmth:
Focus on small easy to achieve goals, when first starting towards a way of self improvement. If you are wanting to work on your relationship with God, choose a small goal that you can be consistent with. And the same goes for if your goal is to spend more time with serving others. Consistency is better than half baked attempts.
Ask your spouse, friend, or a fellow church member to work toward this lifestyle together with you. Set goals together as a group and hold each other accountable.
Start a gratitude journal, having warmth must come from a more positive and content mindset. Learning to be grateful is the first step towards that warmth.
Track your purposeful time spend with God. And track your purposeful time spent with serving others. Make a goal for each of these categories to increase the time spent. We can’t grow a relationship without giving up more time to do so.
Study through the New Testament on all the occurrences of love, and each time, ask yourself if you are demonstrating that kind of love towards others.
About the Author: My name is Katie, and I’m a Church of Christ Preacher’s wife in Kentucky. I am also a proud homeschool mom to two brilliant boys. I love to craft, and make and bind my own notebooks. I also make a weekly podcast show called “Just Bible No Fluff",” where I skip all of fluffy extras and hop right into a short yet impactful exegetical study of the scripture. My mission and vision in life is this: “To empower women Spiritually by enhancing their skills in deep Bible study, equipping them to effectively teach the Gospel to others, and guiding them in cultivating Spiritual growth beyond the Church building.”