I definitely scored farmer wife points yesterday....I hung out with RM in the barn where the source of our water is (we call it the pumphouse). I stood there holding a light as he worked late into the night finishing off the final little bit of work needed to keep our water from freezing. My feet nearly froze, but it was worth it as this morning we have water! So many wrongs needed to be righted in that little room, but now it should all work fine. I'm grateful! We are slowly rebuilding the ruins, one little section at a time. Will anyone ever appreciate all the work that has gone into it? Don't know, but it all has to be done....especially if we wanted water!
I'm continually amazed that RM knows all that he knows. I asked him last night, "How do you know how to do this?!" There he was looking at 60 year old electrical boxes, switches, wires, etc. and somehow he knew what to do. He said, "Honestly? I don't know!" It made one of our boys say, "I want to be able to know what you know." Maybe that is why we are going through all these farm renos....just so they'll be capable men one day, too.
Yesterday, was our now former pastor's last sermon. He did a great job of walking us through Matt. 2:1-12. He pointed out all the different characters in the story, including the Magi, Herrod, the Jews, and also the chief priests and scribes. Each one had a different reaction to hearing about Jesus.
The Magi were curious and searching. They sought Jesus out, followed the star, studied the sky, probably knew all the prophecies, and ultimately found Him and worshiped. This was an interesting part of the story that I hadn't noticed before. It doesn't say anywhere that the star had dimmed, but there must be a reason that when they arrived in Jerusalem they had to ask around for where Jesus might be? That was where Herrod entered into the story. He heard about Jesus and was immediately threatened. The Jewish people, it said, were "troubled".
Later on, after Herrod talked to the wise men, he sent them on their way and told them, "...bring me word, that I too may come and worship him." This is where "behold, the star that they had seen when it rose, went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with with great joy." It almost seems like the star had brought them to Jerusalem and then either stopped or dimmed or changed in some way because in this verse it seems to start up again! The verse says it came to "rest over the place where the child was". The verse after says "And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother", so it must have literally stopped right over a certain house! If the star had done that right away they wouldn't have had to stop and ask.......curious, isn't it?
I find this fascinating because it never occurred to me before that the star might have stopped or dimmed, but I supposed it is possible, just so that the prophecies could be fulfilled. As a result of stopping to ask where the child was, Herrod ended up killing all the baby boys under two. That could have only happened if the wise men had stopped and asked about Jesus and this, too, was prophesied.
The pastor compared the light of the star to the light of the fire that led the Israelites in the wilderness. Technically, the fire would go out after God had led them to the exact place He wanted them to go, but did that mean God had left them? No. He was always there. His presence was just not visible to the eye. Perhaps it was like that with the wise men. Perhaps the star dimmed or stopped, but did that mean God left the wise men and was no longer guiding? No, His presence was always there.
So many things to conclude that I immediately took to heart....First, God can use supernatural means to guide us, how I pray for that! Secondly, sometimes His light will dim and it will appear He's not there, that His presence has gone, but in fact, He never left. It's a temporary, supernatural, God-planned, sovereign "pause". Thirdly, we just need to keep being like the Magi, constantly seeking Him, asking about Him, learning about Him, His will, His Scriptures. At some point, the star lit up again and led them to exactly where He was. I have to believe He will do the same for me. He will lead us to exactly where He wants us, in His timing. This must have been such a relief to the Magi as they weren't just happy when they saw the star again, but "they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy." They were super-dee-duper happy!
I'm excited to think that God can do that for me. I can rejoice exceedingly, with great joy, in anticipation of His guidance.
Monday, 19 December 2016
Friday, 16 December 2016
Treasures in the Darkness (and the cold...)
Wow! It is COLD!!! We are always so taken aback by winter, as if it is a new phenomenon every year. I continue to be so grateful to those who went before us, the poor pioneers who had no heat, no warm homes. I really don't know how they survived!
I can't believe how my kids will go outside even in this windy weather. They'll bundle up and take out the sleds and whip down the little hill we have outside. But I'm even grateful for that. That little hill is the perfect size! Not too steep to kill you, but enough of a slope to go fast on an icy trail. My six year old loves it!
Ok still in Isaiah, but not in chapter 45. It just seems to be about Jesus entering into this world simply to do the impossible. The chapter begins with God choosing to use Cyrus, a pagan king, to be His instrument to free the Jews from their captivity. This is an amazing passage because Cyrus isn't even alive when it was written! It is a prophetic passage written 150 years before Cyrus is even born...
"Thus says the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed...
And though this is a prophetic passage, I take so much comfort from it as well. There are so many phrases that jump out at me, such as, "whose right hand I have grasped". God reaches out and grabs hold of us, even if we don't want Him, too! God then tells Isaiah what Cyrus will do, "subdue nations before him" and he'll "loose the belts of kings". He'll also "open doors before him". This is a list of thing that are not easy to do! Yet the way it is written it just sounds so matter-of-fact. I take heart in regularly bringing my list of impossible things for God to do and I know none of those things are impossible for God. He freed the Jews from their captivity. Can't He free us as well?
Isaiah continues, "I will go before you and level the exalted places." (45:2) Cyrus didn't know that God was going before him, but I know. He goes before all of us. And the picture I get in my mind of leveling exalted places is that God takes down the barriers in front of us. The next few verses says this, too,
"I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron, I will give you the treasure of darkness and the hoards in secret places" (45:3)
This has to be my favourite verse of the week. I've been saying the key phrases to the kids and RM all the time, "treasures in the darkness", "breaking doors of bronze", "cutting bars of iron".....Yes, it was to Cyrus, speaking of how God was going to use him, but does this not speak of what God can do in anyone's life? And, once again, the picture are of the impossible. Doors of bronze? Bars of iron? Treasures in the darkness? But that is exactly what God can do and, just like in Isaiah, God can use even a pagan king, or a secular job, or a difficult situation, or the most obscure unlikely "whatever", to break our own doors of bronze and bars of iron.
We are constantly seeing treasure in the darkness. In our time of being stretched these few years, we've only seen God's blessing, His many treasures. So often that is how it is...through the darkness we see the light even brighter.
So yes, it was a passage for Cyrus, but it spoke to me as well.
Now my boys are off to the barn where they will turn on a heater to warm up our frozen pipes, but this should be the last of that. The final insulation should fix all wrongs this weekend. The treasure in the darkness in this situation? Perhaps that my boys will learn how to fix broken things, they will learn to do hard things, they will be kind to their own families and learn to take care of their own places one day.....one day....right now they aren't loving it and the cold too much!
I can't believe how my kids will go outside even in this windy weather. They'll bundle up and take out the sleds and whip down the little hill we have outside. But I'm even grateful for that. That little hill is the perfect size! Not too steep to kill you, but enough of a slope to go fast on an icy trail. My six year old loves it!
Ok still in Isaiah, but not in chapter 45. It just seems to be about Jesus entering into this world simply to do the impossible. The chapter begins with God choosing to use Cyrus, a pagan king, to be His instrument to free the Jews from their captivity. This is an amazing passage because Cyrus isn't even alive when it was written! It is a prophetic passage written 150 years before Cyrus is even born...
"Thus says the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed...
And though this is a prophetic passage, I take so much comfort from it as well. There are so many phrases that jump out at me, such as, "whose right hand I have grasped". God reaches out and grabs hold of us, even if we don't want Him, too! God then tells Isaiah what Cyrus will do, "subdue nations before him" and he'll "loose the belts of kings". He'll also "open doors before him". This is a list of thing that are not easy to do! Yet the way it is written it just sounds so matter-of-fact. I take heart in regularly bringing my list of impossible things for God to do and I know none of those things are impossible for God. He freed the Jews from their captivity. Can't He free us as well?
Isaiah continues, "I will go before you and level the exalted places." (45:2) Cyrus didn't know that God was going before him, but I know. He goes before all of us. And the picture I get in my mind of leveling exalted places is that God takes down the barriers in front of us. The next few verses says this, too,
"I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron, I will give you the treasure of darkness and the hoards in secret places" (45:3)
This has to be my favourite verse of the week. I've been saying the key phrases to the kids and RM all the time, "treasures in the darkness", "breaking doors of bronze", "cutting bars of iron".....Yes, it was to Cyrus, speaking of how God was going to use him, but does this not speak of what God can do in anyone's life? And, once again, the picture are of the impossible. Doors of bronze? Bars of iron? Treasures in the darkness? But that is exactly what God can do and, just like in Isaiah, God can use even a pagan king, or a secular job, or a difficult situation, or the most obscure unlikely "whatever", to break our own doors of bronze and bars of iron.
We are constantly seeing treasure in the darkness. In our time of being stretched these few years, we've only seen God's blessing, His many treasures. So often that is how it is...through the darkness we see the light even brighter.
So yes, it was a passage for Cyrus, but it spoke to me as well.
Now my boys are off to the barn where they will turn on a heater to warm up our frozen pipes, but this should be the last of that. The final insulation should fix all wrongs this weekend. The treasure in the darkness in this situation? Perhaps that my boys will learn how to fix broken things, they will learn to do hard things, they will be kind to their own families and learn to take care of their own places one day.....one day....right now they aren't loving it and the cold too much!
Wednesday, 14 December 2016
Christmas in Isaiah
This winter, just like last year, one of my younger kids' favourite activities is being in the tub. Yesterday, as I pulled my 4 year old out of the tub, for what seems like the 100th time in the last few days, and dried him off, I noticed how adorable he is and told him, "You are SOOOOOOO cute!" Then, I added proudly, partly to him and partly to myself, "I make cute kids!"
He looked at me with a cocked head, "Mom, God created me, not you."
Harumph! He sure put me in my place!
But, what he said was true and all week I've seen that truth worked out. God is in control of my life, not me, if I were to ever dare take credit for the good things that happen or dare to blame Him when things aren't going as I would like.
I've been reading in Isaiah this week, partly because of the sermon I heard on Sunday and also because of a devotional passage I was directed to. What a great book to read at Christmas as it is full of the prophesies of Christ's coming. But what I love most is the constant theme of how the coming Redeemer will be a bond breaker, freeing the oppressed. That theme has been so encouraging as I know of another friend whose husband is struggling deeply emotional, mentally and even physically. This book is full of encouragement and hope for her. Or for my children, who wonder about their future, their education, will they marry....What about us, with our church situation, or future employment, or future financial freedom, or even a car....! Yet this book sits right there, as an amazing reminder to have hope.
Isaiah 9 has the classic passage we all know and read this time of year...
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace..." (Isaiah 9:6)
I have read that passage many times, seen it on many Christmas cards, but I have never seen it read at Christmas in its context. The chapter before, particularly verse 11-22, are strikingly opposite.
Chapter 8:11 begins with a warning, "For the Lord spoke thus to me with His strong hand upon me, and warned me not to walk in the way of this people..."
And what is the "way of this people"? It goes on to say, "Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. But the Lord of hosts, Him you shall honour as holy. Let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread."
So, the "way of the people" seems to be seeing everything as a conspiracy, being fearful and full of dread. I've written about that before and my new favourite phrase is, "no fear, no panic, no dread". That seems to be the pattern written again here. No fear, no dread and, a new phrase....stop seeing things as a conspiracy! Satan wants us to turn against each other in these church crises and to see everything as a conspiracy. What we need to do instead is to fear God and let Him be our dread. The "way of the people" is also another great reminder to not get caught up this time of year in the way the world celebrates December 25th. It is absolutely nuts out there! I'm so glad we pulled back a few years ago. I would never be sane if I kept doing things the way I had been.
"He will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense..." He is where we need to go to for our safe place. It may seem that He is hiding His face from us right now, but Isaiah says, wait for Him. "I will wait for the Lord who his hiding His face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in Him." (vs. 17) It isn't easy to wait for the Lord, especially when He appears to be hiding His face. It's easy to wait when we have "proof" He's working. Not so easy when there is darkness.
The world would tell me to "inquire of the mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter". (vs 18) I certainly don't have anyone in my life who will direct me in that way, but we do need to be careful that we inquire of God first. Isaiah says it quite simply, "should not a people inquire of their God?" What a great question! I think it is good to talk with other good Christian people, but we must take all things first to God.
Again, a warning, "If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn." Dawn, the symbol of a new day, of light coming up out of the darkness. I love that word. If there were no dawn, then we remain in darkness. I want dawn!
If we do not inquire of the Lord and we seek our own methods of wisdom, not only will there not be dawn, it will be much worse than that, "They will pass through the land, greatly distressed and hungry. And when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will speak contemptuously against their kind and their God, and turn their faces upwards. And they will look to the earth, but behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish. And they will be thrust into thick darkness." (vs. 21, 22)
Isn't this the description of so many around us? Greatly distressed and hungry, speaking contemptuously, enraged, full of gloom, in anguish, walking around in thick darkness. Such a great description of life without God. This doesn't just describe non-believers, but people who claim to be Christians, but who are not going to God for help, but to others who cannot get them out of their gloom. How many people in our day are getting their anguish masked by meds. That will give temporary relief, but not eternal relief.
This it the beautiful turning point, where, literally, a new chapter begins, "But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish."
Suddenly, it's Christmas in Isaiah!
"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light, those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, in them has light shone." Wonderful light. And not just for those who were sad, but for those who were in "deep darkness". I picture a tunnel where it is such a long tunnel you can't even see the end. We read of such a tunnel. It was being built for the railroad. The men who built the railroad came to a mountain that they couldn't go around, but had to blast through. The men were in utter darkness for 4 years! It was too long to come and go, in or out, day after day, so they just stayed in darkness. Imagine the day they came out of the darkness into the light!
Then, the theme of of the yoke, the staff and the rod of the oppressor being broken...
"For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, and the rod of his oppressor, you have broken...." Maybe it is describe in those 3 different ways to represent all the different types of oppression we have in our lives. But Christ came to break whatever type of oppression or burden it is that we are carrying.
It is as this point we read that passage I wrote above, "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given." Praise God for Christmas!
How grateful I am for these passages. Such fantastic reminders of the true meaning of Christmas. Jesus came to bring light, hope and to break the bonds that hold us captive.
He looked at me with a cocked head, "Mom, God created me, not you."
Harumph! He sure put me in my place!
But, what he said was true and all week I've seen that truth worked out. God is in control of my life, not me, if I were to ever dare take credit for the good things that happen or dare to blame Him when things aren't going as I would like.
I've been reading in Isaiah this week, partly because of the sermon I heard on Sunday and also because of a devotional passage I was directed to. What a great book to read at Christmas as it is full of the prophesies of Christ's coming. But what I love most is the constant theme of how the coming Redeemer will be a bond breaker, freeing the oppressed. That theme has been so encouraging as I know of another friend whose husband is struggling deeply emotional, mentally and even physically. This book is full of encouragement and hope for her. Or for my children, who wonder about their future, their education, will they marry....What about us, with our church situation, or future employment, or future financial freedom, or even a car....! Yet this book sits right there, as an amazing reminder to have hope.
Isaiah 9 has the classic passage we all know and read this time of year...
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace..." (Isaiah 9:6)
I have read that passage many times, seen it on many Christmas cards, but I have never seen it read at Christmas in its context. The chapter before, particularly verse 11-22, are strikingly opposite.
Chapter 8:11 begins with a warning, "For the Lord spoke thus to me with His strong hand upon me, and warned me not to walk in the way of this people..."
And what is the "way of this people"? It goes on to say, "Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. But the Lord of hosts, Him you shall honour as holy. Let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread."
So, the "way of the people" seems to be seeing everything as a conspiracy, being fearful and full of dread. I've written about that before and my new favourite phrase is, "no fear, no panic, no dread". That seems to be the pattern written again here. No fear, no dread and, a new phrase....stop seeing things as a conspiracy! Satan wants us to turn against each other in these church crises and to see everything as a conspiracy. What we need to do instead is to fear God and let Him be our dread. The "way of the people" is also another great reminder to not get caught up this time of year in the way the world celebrates December 25th. It is absolutely nuts out there! I'm so glad we pulled back a few years ago. I would never be sane if I kept doing things the way I had been.
"He will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense..." He is where we need to go to for our safe place. It may seem that He is hiding His face from us right now, but Isaiah says, wait for Him. "I will wait for the Lord who his hiding His face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in Him." (vs. 17) It isn't easy to wait for the Lord, especially when He appears to be hiding His face. It's easy to wait when we have "proof" He's working. Not so easy when there is darkness.
The world would tell me to "inquire of the mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter". (vs 18) I certainly don't have anyone in my life who will direct me in that way, but we do need to be careful that we inquire of God first. Isaiah says it quite simply, "should not a people inquire of their God?" What a great question! I think it is good to talk with other good Christian people, but we must take all things first to God.
Again, a warning, "If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn." Dawn, the symbol of a new day, of light coming up out of the darkness. I love that word. If there were no dawn, then we remain in darkness. I want dawn!
If we do not inquire of the Lord and we seek our own methods of wisdom, not only will there not be dawn, it will be much worse than that, "They will pass through the land, greatly distressed and hungry. And when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will speak contemptuously against their kind and their God, and turn their faces upwards. And they will look to the earth, but behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish. And they will be thrust into thick darkness." (vs. 21, 22)
Isn't this the description of so many around us? Greatly distressed and hungry, speaking contemptuously, enraged, full of gloom, in anguish, walking around in thick darkness. Such a great description of life without God. This doesn't just describe non-believers, but people who claim to be Christians, but who are not going to God for help, but to others who cannot get them out of their gloom. How many people in our day are getting their anguish masked by meds. That will give temporary relief, but not eternal relief.
This it the beautiful turning point, where, literally, a new chapter begins, "But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish."
Suddenly, it's Christmas in Isaiah!
"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light, those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, in them has light shone." Wonderful light. And not just for those who were sad, but for those who were in "deep darkness". I picture a tunnel where it is such a long tunnel you can't even see the end. We read of such a tunnel. It was being built for the railroad. The men who built the railroad came to a mountain that they couldn't go around, but had to blast through. The men were in utter darkness for 4 years! It was too long to come and go, in or out, day after day, so they just stayed in darkness. Imagine the day they came out of the darkness into the light!
Then, the theme of of the yoke, the staff and the rod of the oppressor being broken...
"For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, and the rod of his oppressor, you have broken...." Maybe it is describe in those 3 different ways to represent all the different types of oppression we have in our lives. But Christ came to break whatever type of oppression or burden it is that we are carrying.
It is as this point we read that passage I wrote above, "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given." Praise God for Christmas!
How grateful I am for these passages. Such fantastic reminders of the true meaning of Christmas. Jesus came to bring light, hope and to break the bonds that hold us captive.
Thursday, 8 December 2016
Lessons from a Chicken Coop Door
Last night I was putting my six year old to bed and suddenly he jumped up on the desk beside the door, monkeyed his way to the door frame where a chin-up/pull-up bar is located and proceeded to do 5 full out chin ups. My jaw was on the floor. Have you ever tried to do even one chin up? I said, "Wow! You are going to be strong!" Correction. This is what he said to that, "No, Mom. I am strong." Yup. He is. I told my older 17 year old saw what I had just seen. He said, "He does those every night!" I had seen him do them before, but I didn't realize he was on a workout regime!!!! That's the power of observation....he watches my older boys do them all the time and he just figured, he's supposed to as well! I just wonder how many other 6 year old boys are on a Mr. Universe workout plan. My older boys will do push-ups with a toddler on their back just to make it harder. My 6 year old will put his 4 year old brother on his back! The ratio seems a little more challenging!!!! So, yes, either Mr. Universe or the Olympics we figure.....
I had another great free decorating day yesterday. If you had walked in to my house in the middle of the day and seen my hay covered "antiques" in my kitchen earlier on, you might have been a little skeptical.....even I was! I was determined though. I had been waiting and waiting for the drywall to be finished, mudded, painted, etc....in the family room, but with two full-time jobs, essentially, my poor husband is a little strapped for time! So I asked him, "Are you sure I can't put some things on the wall?!" He kept telling me not to as I would just have to take them all down again, but this week he caved. "Why not?" he said. "We can just take them down and put them back up later." Yeah!
So yesterday, off I went to the barn again. I had had an idea brewing in my mind for a while. I didn't know if it would work, but I wanted to give it a try. I grabbed a few old window frames, some even still had broken glass in them and I also picked up a "chicken coop" door, with rat hole bites in it and everything!
I brought them in where they stood all morning, dropping hay all over the place. After school, I took them into the family room, cleaned them up and proceeded to hang them on the walls. I loved how it turned out! Again, this is where a good blogger inserts a picture. I promise one day I will do that!
We hung Christmas lights along the perimeter of the whole room along the ceiling and it makes the room really cozy, I went back outside and grabbed more greenery from the big bushes and put it all over the place. My kids came in and kept commenting on how much they liked it. That always makes me happy. I think moms love making their homes a happy place for their kids. They want them to always come back once they leave the nest.
I looked around and once again realized I was slowly but surely achieving the look I wanted and I hadn't spent a dime. I love having the barn/store so close by! When I lived in the city, if I had tried to acquire the things I nailed on my wall yesterday, I would have never been able to purchase them all at once. It would have taken my shopping trips, picking one piece at a time....But there is more to the decorating than just a good deal.....
John MacArthur spoke yesterday about contentment, always wanting something else, never being content with what you have. RM and I have realized we "need a guy" to help us finish off the work that isn't done. But that "guy" is going to cost a lot of money to hire one day. I guess I just decided to work with what I had, stop waiting for "the guy" to show up. Contentment settled in, it always does, when I surrender my rights to having everything the way I want them when I want them. Then blessings seem to come, like having my eyes opened to ugly chicken coop doors and yucky broken windows. I've never been able to see that kind of beauty before, past the ugliness. But I think that is one of the blessings that comes with contentment.
I'm not the first person to come up with this idea. Ann Voskamp writes of this, too. She describes what the French call it, "d'un beau affreux" - the ugly beautiful. "That which is perceived as ugly transfigures into beautiful." She says, "The ugly can be beautiful." But she isn't talking about chicken coop doors with rat holes in them, though that is an awesome picture of it. She is speaking about the ugly in our lives. She goes on, "...the dark can give birth to life, suffering can deliver grace, bad can transfigure into good - the ugly can be beautiful."
When I first pulled that chicken coop door out of the barn, it had a big heavy board nailed to the bottom of it where the rats had been trying to get in. How do I know? Because we are battling rats right now. Probably the same ones this other farmer battled, just generations of them that have come since he left! They're everywhere. In and around the coop, my husband's shop, in his office walls. We catch up to 5 a day in traps!!!!! Gross!!!!! That poor farmer, years ago, probably nailed that board on in anger, so frustrated with his chickens and eggs getting eaten. I'm sure he never knew that one day, that very door would be cleaned up, taken off its hinges and hung on a wall in someone's house as decor!!! He never saw the beauty in the ugly. He just saw the rats.
I hang that door as a great reminder to me, to look for the beauty in the ugly, to look for the grace in the suffering, the light in the dark. I need to stop seeing the rats. Yes, it's a pretty antique now, but that took time to get that look achieved. My life is kind of like that door. I'm in the antiquing process! (literally!) Right now, there are aspects of my life I absolutely love, but there are a few that I'd like to change. Antiquing, becoming more beautiful, only comes with time. Hebrews 12:11 says it best, "Later on, however.........it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace." What produces that harvest? The discipline of the Lord. That is the way He "antiques" us. That's how He makes the ugly beautiful. And my favourite part of that phrase is "Later on". It only happens with time. Just like the door took years to achieve that old, worn-out look.
I had another great free decorating day yesterday. If you had walked in to my house in the middle of the day and seen my hay covered "antiques" in my kitchen earlier on, you might have been a little skeptical.....even I was! I was determined though. I had been waiting and waiting for the drywall to be finished, mudded, painted, etc....in the family room, but with two full-time jobs, essentially, my poor husband is a little strapped for time! So I asked him, "Are you sure I can't put some things on the wall?!" He kept telling me not to as I would just have to take them all down again, but this week he caved. "Why not?" he said. "We can just take them down and put them back up later." Yeah!
So yesterday, off I went to the barn again. I had had an idea brewing in my mind for a while. I didn't know if it would work, but I wanted to give it a try. I grabbed a few old window frames, some even still had broken glass in them and I also picked up a "chicken coop" door, with rat hole bites in it and everything!
I brought them in where they stood all morning, dropping hay all over the place. After school, I took them into the family room, cleaned them up and proceeded to hang them on the walls. I loved how it turned out! Again, this is where a good blogger inserts a picture. I promise one day I will do that!
We hung Christmas lights along the perimeter of the whole room along the ceiling and it makes the room really cozy, I went back outside and grabbed more greenery from the big bushes and put it all over the place. My kids came in and kept commenting on how much they liked it. That always makes me happy. I think moms love making their homes a happy place for their kids. They want them to always come back once they leave the nest.
I looked around and once again realized I was slowly but surely achieving the look I wanted and I hadn't spent a dime. I love having the barn/store so close by! When I lived in the city, if I had tried to acquire the things I nailed on my wall yesterday, I would have never been able to purchase them all at once. It would have taken my shopping trips, picking one piece at a time....But there is more to the decorating than just a good deal.....
John MacArthur spoke yesterday about contentment, always wanting something else, never being content with what you have. RM and I have realized we "need a guy" to help us finish off the work that isn't done. But that "guy" is going to cost a lot of money to hire one day. I guess I just decided to work with what I had, stop waiting for "the guy" to show up. Contentment settled in, it always does, when I surrender my rights to having everything the way I want them when I want them. Then blessings seem to come, like having my eyes opened to ugly chicken coop doors and yucky broken windows. I've never been able to see that kind of beauty before, past the ugliness. But I think that is one of the blessings that comes with contentment.
I'm not the first person to come up with this idea. Ann Voskamp writes of this, too. She describes what the French call it, "d'un beau affreux" - the ugly beautiful. "That which is perceived as ugly transfigures into beautiful." She says, "The ugly can be beautiful." But she isn't talking about chicken coop doors with rat holes in them, though that is an awesome picture of it. She is speaking about the ugly in our lives. She goes on, "...the dark can give birth to life, suffering can deliver grace, bad can transfigure into good - the ugly can be beautiful."
When I first pulled that chicken coop door out of the barn, it had a big heavy board nailed to the bottom of it where the rats had been trying to get in. How do I know? Because we are battling rats right now. Probably the same ones this other farmer battled, just generations of them that have come since he left! They're everywhere. In and around the coop, my husband's shop, in his office walls. We catch up to 5 a day in traps!!!!! Gross!!!!! That poor farmer, years ago, probably nailed that board on in anger, so frustrated with his chickens and eggs getting eaten. I'm sure he never knew that one day, that very door would be cleaned up, taken off its hinges and hung on a wall in someone's house as decor!!! He never saw the beauty in the ugly. He just saw the rats.
I hang that door as a great reminder to me, to look for the beauty in the ugly, to look for the grace in the suffering, the light in the dark. I need to stop seeing the rats. Yes, it's a pretty antique now, but that took time to get that look achieved. My life is kind of like that door. I'm in the antiquing process! (literally!) Right now, there are aspects of my life I absolutely love, but there are a few that I'd like to change. Antiquing, becoming more beautiful, only comes with time. Hebrews 12:11 says it best, "Later on, however.........it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace." What produces that harvest? The discipline of the Lord. That is the way He "antiques" us. That's how He makes the ugly beautiful. And my favourite part of that phrase is "Later on". It only happens with time. Just like the door took years to achieve that old, worn-out look.
Wednesday, 7 December 2016
Define Church
It seems like I was writing this very thing only a few months ago, yet here I am writing this again.....our pastor resigned this week. The second pastor to resign in less than 6 months, the 3rd pastor we know in less than 2 years. In all 3 cases, the blame does not fall on the pastor. Each one felt they had to leave and for good reasons. At the current church, people we know are not happy, as they are aware of the reasons, and one by one, families, once again, are leaving.....for what?! Where will people go?! We find ourselves in absolute shock to be going through this for the second time.
It brings me back to my childhood, to a place of nostalgia, a place my children won't know...ever...because it just doesn't seem to exist anymore. I grew up in a church, a large church, on the west coast. As a child, if there were problems, I didn't notice. All I remember is that I loved going to church. We were there all morning! The children went to children's church before the service. I assume my parents went to some adult Sunday School. I don't even know! Then, afterwards we all went to the service together.
I remember singing. As a child just learning to play piano, I would follow along with the notes and chords written in the hymnal. I noticed my mom wasn't singing the melody and I think that was my first introduction to harmony. Nowadays there might be a hymnal in the pew, but no one uses them. The hymn books were so great. Not only was it how I learned harmony, but to see the written words week after week. I would peruse it during the sermon, too, noticing the writers, the dates they wrote them. That was where I learned all the great hymns, in this amazing big church where 1000 people sang loud and strong. I stood by my grandmother who lived with us for awhile. Again, as a child, I thought she had a funny singing voice, but now, I reflect and I wish I could hear it again. She sang like angel! What a privilege to have had that opportunity to worship with her! I just didn't know it then.
It was in that church that I learned about communion. I very specifically remember my mom leaning over and explaining what the elements signified and I took it for the first time. I understood and I watched her pray while the elements were passed month after month. It was a beautiful ceremony as I saw the men of the church take their role so seriously.
I also grew up there and went from a girl who fell asleep beside her mom during the sermon to a girl who wanted to fill in the blanks as the preacher talked. I realized I could make the most of that time in church and try to learn and week after week I did. I saw pastors come and go. I heard funny ones who always told good stories and some fire and brimstone pastors who would yell or cry or go waaay too long, but I learned to worship.
People were coming to Christ at that church. Unbelievers were walking in off the street. They were getting saved because of actual discipleship classes that were going on, taught by my parents, not because of seeker sensitive services. We had so many people in our home, new believers, that "smelled like smoke" as they were such recent converts. The gospel didn't have to get watered down to reach these people.
And the church grew. Really grew. And it wasn't artificial growth. There was depth in the growth. I saw that even as a child. Discipleship programs ran across all the ages, from the girls and boys programs to the youth and up into the adults. People were praying. Small groups in the community were meeting. Deep friendships were made that we still have today though we moved away 33 years ago!!!! My parents best friends are still there and are in regular contact with one another.
I was baptized there, by my Dad. My sister was married there.
What are my kids going to remember? It makes me so sad that their church experience has been one of constant change. As a result, church has become more of what we do during the week and less of what happens on Sunday as so much "church" has been going on in our home lately as we take care of this other family each week. I love that. Maybe it isn't fair to compare my childhood to my kids', but I still wish their experience had been more like mine. Oh, that the apostle Paul, as I often say, would just come down and tell us what to do. Deep down, I also take consolation in knowing that God is sovereign and really this must just be another sign of the end of the times. Satan is really working hard to take down churches, pastors, families. As Dad said this week, "he's in his death throes."
In the meantime, while we figure out what to do, we just keep doing "church" at home. Getting our kids in the Word, reading it together, praying, seeking God's will for our family and asking Him to show us - what is church?!
It brings me back to my childhood, to a place of nostalgia, a place my children won't know...ever...because it just doesn't seem to exist anymore. I grew up in a church, a large church, on the west coast. As a child, if there were problems, I didn't notice. All I remember is that I loved going to church. We were there all morning! The children went to children's church before the service. I assume my parents went to some adult Sunday School. I don't even know! Then, afterwards we all went to the service together.
I remember singing. As a child just learning to play piano, I would follow along with the notes and chords written in the hymnal. I noticed my mom wasn't singing the melody and I think that was my first introduction to harmony. Nowadays there might be a hymnal in the pew, but no one uses them. The hymn books were so great. Not only was it how I learned harmony, but to see the written words week after week. I would peruse it during the sermon, too, noticing the writers, the dates they wrote them. That was where I learned all the great hymns, in this amazing big church where 1000 people sang loud and strong. I stood by my grandmother who lived with us for awhile. Again, as a child, I thought she had a funny singing voice, but now, I reflect and I wish I could hear it again. She sang like angel! What a privilege to have had that opportunity to worship with her! I just didn't know it then.
It was in that church that I learned about communion. I very specifically remember my mom leaning over and explaining what the elements signified and I took it for the first time. I understood and I watched her pray while the elements were passed month after month. It was a beautiful ceremony as I saw the men of the church take their role so seriously.
I also grew up there and went from a girl who fell asleep beside her mom during the sermon to a girl who wanted to fill in the blanks as the preacher talked. I realized I could make the most of that time in church and try to learn and week after week I did. I saw pastors come and go. I heard funny ones who always told good stories and some fire and brimstone pastors who would yell or cry or go waaay too long, but I learned to worship.
People were coming to Christ at that church. Unbelievers were walking in off the street. They were getting saved because of actual discipleship classes that were going on, taught by my parents, not because of seeker sensitive services. We had so many people in our home, new believers, that "smelled like smoke" as they were such recent converts. The gospel didn't have to get watered down to reach these people.
And the church grew. Really grew. And it wasn't artificial growth. There was depth in the growth. I saw that even as a child. Discipleship programs ran across all the ages, from the girls and boys programs to the youth and up into the adults. People were praying. Small groups in the community were meeting. Deep friendships were made that we still have today though we moved away 33 years ago!!!! My parents best friends are still there and are in regular contact with one another.
I was baptized there, by my Dad. My sister was married there.
What are my kids going to remember? It makes me so sad that their church experience has been one of constant change. As a result, church has become more of what we do during the week and less of what happens on Sunday as so much "church" has been going on in our home lately as we take care of this other family each week. I love that. Maybe it isn't fair to compare my childhood to my kids', but I still wish their experience had been more like mine. Oh, that the apostle Paul, as I often say, would just come down and tell us what to do. Deep down, I also take consolation in knowing that God is sovereign and really this must just be another sign of the end of the times. Satan is really working hard to take down churches, pastors, families. As Dad said this week, "he's in his death throes."
In the meantime, while we figure out what to do, we just keep doing "church" at home. Getting our kids in the Word, reading it together, praying, seeking God's will for our family and asking Him to show us - what is church?!
Friday, 2 December 2016
More on the Widow and Her Oil
We're nearing the end of a full week, but a rich one. Perhaps not in money, as we waited all week for a cheque that didn't come, but in friendship, mutual blessing and seeing God's hand every day.
As families, we tried to have some sort of family worship together, either in the morning or at night. We purchased a set of videos years ago put out by Crown Financial called God Provides. What an amazing study series if you're ever looking for encouragement and wondering if God will provide. Whenever we find ourselves in a situation like we have this week where the funds just aren't coming in as we hoped, we pull out one of those videos just to remind us, God does provide. It is always such a faith-building time of worship.
On Wednesday, when we were on day 3 of waiting by the mailbox, RM said, "I know what we're doing tonight for family worship.....get the widow and the oil video...." I immediately jumped up as I knew what he was thinking. It was perfect! It was the actual depiction of the story I wrote about a few weeks ago that described my friend as a widow selling her oil. I had told her about the story in the Bible and how I thought it related to her, but she hadn't seen the video....I couldn't wait for her to see it.
The videos are all about 15 minutes long and they are amazingly produced. They retell Bible stories in their historical settings and they are all very moving. The scene opens up with the widow's young boys sleeping on the floor with their mother praying and pleading on the floor beside them on her knees. Right from the beginning all of us adults were a mess. I had never watched it with an actual "widow" in the room with me before. She couldn't get through it. RM couldn't get through it. It was awful as we all blubbered away. As the scene continues, the men whom her husband owed money to break into her house to threaten her. They'll take her children, they say, unless she comes up with the money in three days (artistic license, I guess, as that isn't in the Bible). She sits there crying against the door. How my friend has done that these last few months. She then runs through the streets of Jerusalem looking for Elisha crying, crying, his name. Finally she finds him and begs him to tell her what to do. The famous line, "What do you have?" is asked. "I have nothing, except a jar of oil in the house." This is my friend's story. She has nothing, no education, hasn't worked a day in her life, no house, no resources....nothing. Perfect. Just what God needs. Nothing.
Elisha tells her what to do. She is to gather vessels, to borrow from her neighbours. I had never noticed that part of the story before. The role of the neighbours! Borrowing is never portrayed as good in the Bible, but in this case she is told to. My friend has been given many, many gifts, too many to count, in these last few months. She knows she could never repay all that people have done for her, but this is the neat part of the story. Her friends give her the vessels. God either prompts them or they are just naturally giving, but however it happens, they are a part of how God works! It is really a critcial part of the miracle. If the friends hadn't given her the vessels she would never have been able to fill them with oil to sell to pay her debts. I love it! I've always thought it was the miracle of the endless oil, but no, I think it is that God used others to help the widow. Does she have to pay them back? At the end of the story Elisha tells her, "Go and sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on the rest." I suppose that implies that she should pay back those she can, but there were perhaps some who gave her vessels anonymously, who knows? She doesn't have to pay them back, just the ones she is aware of.
This gives me a new perspective on gifts as we, too, have been given many gifts over the years. I've always hated to receive monetary gifts as it is so humbling, but now I see God has used those gifts to help us very much and that those gifts can actually be part of the miracle. I do hope we can somehow repay those who have given to us either monetarily or by paying it forward to others. Maybe that is why I've enjoyed helping my friend and her family so much this week. It is a way to pay it forward for all that I've been given.
The other thing that jumps out at me is that the widow is told to "go and sell". She isn't supposed to just sit around waiting for oil to come to her. She has to go and work. That must have been frightening. It would have terrified me, especially if I'd never had to step out in faith like that. What if I'd never talked to a neighbour before? My friend is not a people-person. She would much rather be at home never talking to others. She likes her personal space. Now she is being called to be friendly to everyone and anyone she meets! It's killing her! In a good way! But God is faithful and if he is asking her to do this, then He'll give her the ability. She's never been so friendly in her whole life!
All this to say, by the end of that time of family worship, we tried to pray through the tears streaming down our faces. It was perfect timing as she was just about to have her "oils" class. Women would be showing up in just a few minutes. The oils are all she has right now. As the women came and purchased her oils, it allowed her to go the next level in her business which means she can make more money which means she will be less and less dependent on others. That was a significant benchmark as it takes most people in the business six months to make that level and she made it in 1 month. From the outside it appears like it's just a little home business, but it is so much more than that. It is what God has given her, for this moment in her life. At some point the oil may "stop flowing" as it did in the Bible story, but for now, it is taking off and she is thrilled.
As usual, I thank God for His Word, for including this story in Scripture, for allowing it to come to life in such a significant way, not just for her, but for me.
As families, we tried to have some sort of family worship together, either in the morning or at night. We purchased a set of videos years ago put out by Crown Financial called God Provides. What an amazing study series if you're ever looking for encouragement and wondering if God will provide. Whenever we find ourselves in a situation like we have this week where the funds just aren't coming in as we hoped, we pull out one of those videos just to remind us, God does provide. It is always such a faith-building time of worship.
On Wednesday, when we were on day 3 of waiting by the mailbox, RM said, "I know what we're doing tonight for family worship.....get the widow and the oil video...." I immediately jumped up as I knew what he was thinking. It was perfect! It was the actual depiction of the story I wrote about a few weeks ago that described my friend as a widow selling her oil. I had told her about the story in the Bible and how I thought it related to her, but she hadn't seen the video....I couldn't wait for her to see it.
The videos are all about 15 minutes long and they are amazingly produced. They retell Bible stories in their historical settings and they are all very moving. The scene opens up with the widow's young boys sleeping on the floor with their mother praying and pleading on the floor beside them on her knees. Right from the beginning all of us adults were a mess. I had never watched it with an actual "widow" in the room with me before. She couldn't get through it. RM couldn't get through it. It was awful as we all blubbered away. As the scene continues, the men whom her husband owed money to break into her house to threaten her. They'll take her children, they say, unless she comes up with the money in three days (artistic license, I guess, as that isn't in the Bible). She sits there crying against the door. How my friend has done that these last few months. She then runs through the streets of Jerusalem looking for Elisha crying, crying, his name. Finally she finds him and begs him to tell her what to do. The famous line, "What do you have?" is asked. "I have nothing, except a jar of oil in the house." This is my friend's story. She has nothing, no education, hasn't worked a day in her life, no house, no resources....nothing. Perfect. Just what God needs. Nothing.
Elisha tells her what to do. She is to gather vessels, to borrow from her neighbours. I had never noticed that part of the story before. The role of the neighbours! Borrowing is never portrayed as good in the Bible, but in this case she is told to. My friend has been given many, many gifts, too many to count, in these last few months. She knows she could never repay all that people have done for her, but this is the neat part of the story. Her friends give her the vessels. God either prompts them or they are just naturally giving, but however it happens, they are a part of how God works! It is really a critcial part of the miracle. If the friends hadn't given her the vessels she would never have been able to fill them with oil to sell to pay her debts. I love it! I've always thought it was the miracle of the endless oil, but no, I think it is that God used others to help the widow. Does she have to pay them back? At the end of the story Elisha tells her, "Go and sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on the rest." I suppose that implies that she should pay back those she can, but there were perhaps some who gave her vessels anonymously, who knows? She doesn't have to pay them back, just the ones she is aware of.
This gives me a new perspective on gifts as we, too, have been given many gifts over the years. I've always hated to receive monetary gifts as it is so humbling, but now I see God has used those gifts to help us very much and that those gifts can actually be part of the miracle. I do hope we can somehow repay those who have given to us either monetarily or by paying it forward to others. Maybe that is why I've enjoyed helping my friend and her family so much this week. It is a way to pay it forward for all that I've been given.
The other thing that jumps out at me is that the widow is told to "go and sell". She isn't supposed to just sit around waiting for oil to come to her. She has to go and work. That must have been frightening. It would have terrified me, especially if I'd never had to step out in faith like that. What if I'd never talked to a neighbour before? My friend is not a people-person. She would much rather be at home never talking to others. She likes her personal space. Now she is being called to be friendly to everyone and anyone she meets! It's killing her! In a good way! But God is faithful and if he is asking her to do this, then He'll give her the ability. She's never been so friendly in her whole life!
All this to say, by the end of that time of family worship, we tried to pray through the tears streaming down our faces. It was perfect timing as she was just about to have her "oils" class. Women would be showing up in just a few minutes. The oils are all she has right now. As the women came and purchased her oils, it allowed her to go the next level in her business which means she can make more money which means she will be less and less dependent on others. That was a significant benchmark as it takes most people in the business six months to make that level and she made it in 1 month. From the outside it appears like it's just a little home business, but it is so much more than that. It is what God has given her, for this moment in her life. At some point the oil may "stop flowing" as it did in the Bible story, but for now, it is taking off and she is thrilled.
As usual, I thank God for His Word, for including this story in Scripture, for allowing it to come to life in such a significant way, not just for her, but for me.
Thursday, 1 December 2016
Christmas Decorating....for free!
Are you allowed to pray about everything.....really everything???? People would laugh if they knew the things I pray about. They would truly think I don't have a grasp on theology and that God doesn't give two hoots about the things I bring before Him. Here's an example....
As Christmas comes around, I love to make the house all Christmas-y. But my decorations are getting a little old and dated. I can never get my head around buying more. I avoid the malls and the home decor stores as they just make me discontent. I throw out all the flyers that make me want to buy stuff.
I even like to decorate outside around the entry to our home. This past summer when I discovered some wine crates in our barn as well as some other antique ladders and things, I went to town on making a display. I was so thrilled as I hadn't any money except on the annuals. But they gave me such joy all summer long. I used to hate our concrete pad in front of our home, but I was able to turn it into something I loved looking at.
Well, once summer went, I turned to the garden to decorate for fall. I was able to use all sorts of pumpkins, gourds and corn stalks to decorate all around and that, too, made me so happy. The summer flowers were supplemented with a few fall mums and it all looked good.
As Christmas approached, I was thinking again of what I could do without spending any money. I looked at a few pinterest ideas and was inspired, but still didn't know what I could use without buying greenery or things to fill the urns and wine crates with.
Yesterday I was having the oil class that my friend was doing, so I was going to have at least 5-10 ladies here. That's always a good push to get the house decorated! As well, it was a nice day and I was able to work outside with my flip flops still on and no coat, so I knew I needed to take advantage of the good weather.
I was praying the whole time, "Lord, what can I do? Is there anything on our property I could use that I haven't thought of before? Inspire me!" With that, I went about searching for something I could use for greenery to put in all the summer urns, containers and crates. I went around the side of the house and suddenly I noticed, as if it were the first time I'd ever seen them, our overgrown bushes and shrubs. I have always disliked them as they are definitely overgrown and and really add no attractive curb appeal, but this time when I looked at them, I thought, "They're perfect! Why haven't I seen them before?!" I grabbed my pruners and I must have cut away what would have been hundreds of dollars in shrubberies. I walked back and forth from the shrubs to the containers many times. My fingers got so poked and full of juniper oil they still sting. But my little porch came to life! It was all worth it!
I stood back and admired it when it was all said and done and I was amazed. I thanked God for showing me something I could use that was right on my property again. I didn't have to spend a dime, literally. I didn't have to drive to a store with a carload of kids and fight angry crowds. I was able to spruce up old containers that have been sitting in barns unused for years. I was given a creativity that I have never had. I do believe it was a strange answer to prayer. It made me so happy!
The decor was noticed and complimented on which made me smile as I didn't hire anyone to do it and I didn't spend any money. Are there other bigger things in life to pray about? For sure, but this also shows me that God is in the little things, the details of life that matter to moms. It was His idea in the first place to make things beautiful, to create things that make us wonder in awe. I used His "store" to "buy" my things - nature! He makes containers and urns full of beauty all around us. His containers are just forests and gardens! So I'm grateful. My friend who is in the landscaping business came over last night and couldn't believe what I'd done with "nothing". She told me what each bunch of greenery would have cost. I loved hearing that!
The week is coming to a close....our busy house is still very busy, but we are making it work. We're actually getting school done and having a lot of fun at the same time. It has definitely shown that our house lacks a little in size when it comes to sleeping arrangements but no one seems to mind.
Now, dishes to wash.....in all of the extra dishwashing our dishwasher decided to stop....gave up the ghost. That's ok, too, though. It gives all the extra hands around here something to do!
As Christmas comes around, I love to make the house all Christmas-y. But my decorations are getting a little old and dated. I can never get my head around buying more. I avoid the malls and the home decor stores as they just make me discontent. I throw out all the flyers that make me want to buy stuff.
I even like to decorate outside around the entry to our home. This past summer when I discovered some wine crates in our barn as well as some other antique ladders and things, I went to town on making a display. I was so thrilled as I hadn't any money except on the annuals. But they gave me such joy all summer long. I used to hate our concrete pad in front of our home, but I was able to turn it into something I loved looking at.
Well, once summer went, I turned to the garden to decorate for fall. I was able to use all sorts of pumpkins, gourds and corn stalks to decorate all around and that, too, made me so happy. The summer flowers were supplemented with a few fall mums and it all looked good.
As Christmas approached, I was thinking again of what I could do without spending any money. I looked at a few pinterest ideas and was inspired, but still didn't know what I could use without buying greenery or things to fill the urns and wine crates with.
Yesterday I was having the oil class that my friend was doing, so I was going to have at least 5-10 ladies here. That's always a good push to get the house decorated! As well, it was a nice day and I was able to work outside with my flip flops still on and no coat, so I knew I needed to take advantage of the good weather.
I was praying the whole time, "Lord, what can I do? Is there anything on our property I could use that I haven't thought of before? Inspire me!" With that, I went about searching for something I could use for greenery to put in all the summer urns, containers and crates. I went around the side of the house and suddenly I noticed, as if it were the first time I'd ever seen them, our overgrown bushes and shrubs. I have always disliked them as they are definitely overgrown and and really add no attractive curb appeal, but this time when I looked at them, I thought, "They're perfect! Why haven't I seen them before?!" I grabbed my pruners and I must have cut away what would have been hundreds of dollars in shrubberies. I walked back and forth from the shrubs to the containers many times. My fingers got so poked and full of juniper oil they still sting. But my little porch came to life! It was all worth it!
I stood back and admired it when it was all said and done and I was amazed. I thanked God for showing me something I could use that was right on my property again. I didn't have to spend a dime, literally. I didn't have to drive to a store with a carload of kids and fight angry crowds. I was able to spruce up old containers that have been sitting in barns unused for years. I was given a creativity that I have never had. I do believe it was a strange answer to prayer. It made me so happy!
The decor was noticed and complimented on which made me smile as I didn't hire anyone to do it and I didn't spend any money. Are there other bigger things in life to pray about? For sure, but this also shows me that God is in the little things, the details of life that matter to moms. It was His idea in the first place to make things beautiful, to create things that make us wonder in awe. I used His "store" to "buy" my things - nature! He makes containers and urns full of beauty all around us. His containers are just forests and gardens! So I'm grateful. My friend who is in the landscaping business came over last night and couldn't believe what I'd done with "nothing". She told me what each bunch of greenery would have cost. I loved hearing that!
The week is coming to a close....our busy house is still very busy, but we are making it work. We're actually getting school done and having a lot of fun at the same time. It has definitely shown that our house lacks a little in size when it comes to sleeping arrangements but no one seems to mind.
Now, dishes to wash.....in all of the extra dishwashing our dishwasher decided to stop....gave up the ghost. That's ok, too, though. It gives all the extra hands around here something to do!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)