Sunday Afternoon Tea

I feel rather decadent, having shopped at Goodwill and a book sale in the same weekend.  However, I'm very thankful that I had a little extra cash just when wonderful books and vintage items were available.  Both are important items in creating the atmosphere I love in our home.

Isn't it true that we all need a sense of place, where we can walk through a door and feel there is nowhere in the world which makes us feel quite as comfortable and content. Our Lord understood our desire for Home. He tells us He is going to prepare a Place.  I must admit to more than a little time pondering about my Eternal dwelling place.  Imagine one that is created by a Master Carpenter and Designer who knows us more than we know ourselves.

I'm certain when I step through the front door of that Home, I will know for the first time that sense of truly belonging... for this will be my destination and the one Place my heart has desired all these years.

Whether it is an entire house or our half of a room we share, we so need a place to call our own.  The world today is in such chaos, not to mention everything seems to be changing every day.  If nothing else, I can't keep up with technology.  Since our son is taking the Buick on his vacation, we're using his little car.  I stopped by Culligan to purchase bags of water softener salt yesterday and had to have the men put the heavy bags in the back seat because I couldn't figure out how to open the trunk of his car... sigh.  :)

My home is a place where I have some amount of control, in which the way it is decorated can bring peace and calm and a sense of vintage past (at least my style).  It is my responsibility (and those who live with me) to keep it as clutter free as possible.  There are seasons when home just gets messy because people (and at least one animal) live here.  Especially when we've been ill or other experiences of life which take us off our normal routines.  But we try to get back to a sense of order so we can enjoy our surroundings... except just closing the door of my son's room.

There is a reason there are those (often women but a few men here and there) who love making their home a canvas for their creativity.  God created... and we are made in His image.  He planted a garden and placed in the heart of men that desire for Place.

When we come across beautiful china at a price we can afford, place books on the shelf to be enjoyed, set the table with a lace tablecloth, serve milk from a pretty pitcher instead of a carton at the breakfast table, sew beautiful curtains, make our bed with a pretty cover, bake a pie to be served with tea, awake to the aroma of bacon and eggs and coffee made by someone we love... all are just a shadow of the Beauty which is to come in the Home which will be forever ours, in whose City the Builder and Architect is God.

Until that day when perfection is possible, we just enjoy the journey and the contentment that can come with creating a sanctuary for ourselves, family, and friends... that place where one can leave the world behind feeling warm and cozy and safe.  In the midst of imperfect people and difficult circumstances, we choose to use those God given gifts to provide a sense of His presence.

Never underestimate the importance of a domestic missionary, with an apron around her waist, love in her heart, and wisdom in her words.  :)