This Is My Home, These Are My People

This is my home, these are my people.

This is the staircase with an extra stair and loose post, treads worn from traffic.

These are the floors that are daily walked on by feet of all sizes, leaving prints of mud or water or tiny sock fuzz.

This is the living room, where friends gather and forts are made and plants are watered. The sun shines bright on little faces watching trucks and cars, people and dogs. There are waves to neighbors and excited peeks to see if Daddy is home.

These are the books we read and re-read, shelf upon shelf upon shelf. We gather ideas, connect thoughts, giggle and share funny faces. These are the stories we tuck away, the people we learn from.

This is the kitchen, the heart of our home. This is where owies are mended, emotions are dealt with, bellies are filled. This is where lessons are taught and handwriting practiced, where more books are read and recipes learned. This is where herbs are potted, and remedies are made and administered. This is where gifts are made for friends and strangers, where conversations of every kind are had and countless prayers are said. This is where God provides and multiplies.

These are my children, who love life and learning. These are the ones who fill our home with laughter and creativity, who leave PVC pipe mazes in odd places and who tuck in their stuffed animals at quiet time. These are the ones God knit together, giving me the gift of motherhood. The ones He uses to sanctify me and make me more like Himself. These are the ones I in turn am able to teach and train in His ways.

This is my husband, the driving force of our home. This is the man who seeks the Lord and His will, who sets the course for our family and whom we happily follow. This is the man who is constantly learning and sharing what he learns, the one who teaches and listens and guides. This is the man who shares in our joys, dries our tears and makes us laugh. This is my husband, who shows me and our children more about Christ. This man makes our lives so rich.

These are the days that begin early, when the Lord graciously pries open my eyelids to teach me His ways. These are the mornings coffee is made while it’s dark and Scripture is read before little ones awake. These are the mornings God shows Himself mighty.

These are the days of sanctification, of roots going down deep. These are the days the Lord teaches and instructs, convicts and forgives. The days He fills with joy and peace and satisfaction. These are the best days, the days He has given us.

There are many rooms to this house, for nourishing, serving, growing and praising. These are the places and the faces He has surrounded me with. The gifts He has sweetly given. This is my home, and these are my people.

Races and Rhythms || Friday Magnify

"Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together."
Psalm 34:3

The ground was covered in icy slush, our feet crunching and sliding as we walked into the woods. The kids ran off the path to a small waterfall, shouting at us to follow.

Our friends oohed and ahhed at the waterfall and continued walking down the hill, tracing the stream toward the river. The boys took off running, again, daring themselves to slip and slide the whole way down. They managed to stay on their feet, thankfully, and without going over the banks into the icy water. A success in this mama’s book.

We admired the river and continued walking around trees and over roots and across muddy slush until we came to another incline. With each step the view of the river expanded, and we were met at the top by a beautiful historic house whose paint has been chipping away slowly over the years.

The boys took off again, this time down another hill facing the edge of the water. My husband hollered at them to stop and they did, reluctantly, knowing the feats that awaited them over that hill. We’ve been there quite a few times; my husband has not. Nevertheless, it was good he stopped them from racing down the crooked, jagged, steep granite steps that this time were covered in snow.

Once we’d all made it down that flight of stairs, we looked with wonder at the river before us. Here we were again, when the ice chunks had begun to float by. The sights of nature, all in rhythm. The same birds, ducking in and out of the water for food. The same voices from the trees, quiet and hidden.

The boys and men grabbed chunks of ice and began tossing them into the water. This led to skipping them, then smashing them, then seeing who could throw the biggest piece the farthest. Yet again, no one fell in and no one even got feet soaked. Another success.

Two out of four phones died, and we laughed and accepted the fact that we wouldn’t be documenting much, save the couple photos I had gotten earlier. Soon our fingers were frozen and the sun was beginning to set, so we headed back to through the woods to the parking lot.

We came out into the clearing to see a tow truck and a few cars remaining in the parking lot. The truck drove off before we could get to it, and there we sat with wheels spinning in the slush. I got in the driver’s seat and the men went to push. Rock back and forth, back and forth; slide up and down, up and down.

A girl who had been waiting on the side of the road stepped out of her car and walked over, offering to help. A few minutes later, a man who’d been on the phone in his car also stepped out and started to push. With more rocking and sliding we finally grabbed pavement and got up onto the road. Everyone then turned their attention to the other man’s car, which was also stuck. They pushed him up to the road, cheered and shook hands, and got into their respective cars. Off we went.

Those shouts of joy, the laughter and sounds of feet stomping through snow, the competition on the river’s edge. The rhythmic happenings of nature, the ice floating downstream as it always does in the winter. The helpful strangers in the parking lot, and just enough daylight to see the situation. A fun and comical afternoon spent with friends. The Lord has been good to us.

God's Forgiveness || Friday Magnify

"Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together."
Psalm 34:3

Every now and then I am overwhelmed by the responsibility of being a parent. All of my failings and shortcomings are on center stage, and I am plagued with doubt. How can I do this well, when I feel like a total mess? How will my children grow up knowing the Lord, if I give them a poor example of a Christ follower? I know I’m not alone in wondering these things!

In response to this we often hear that we really aren’t that bad, or that God will never give us more than we can handle. We receive some platitudes and move on. Or, we look at our failures and dramatically exaggerate them and think we are just the worst.

Well, sometimes we moms really are that bad. We do sin, and those decisions have consequences. Other times, we have messed up but the solution isn’t a good ol’ pity party that is nursing our pride. And sometimes, God surely does give us more than we can handle - ever looked at Job, or Nehemiah, or Paul? The point isn’t what we can handle, the point is that God is strong and worthy of glory. We have chances to learn our need of Him, and we see Him strong through our weaknesses.

So as I sit and mull over the week, I’m reminded that He is so good regardless of my shortcomings. He brings me back to the foot of the cross, where I humbly ask forgiveness and am given yet another fresh start. He reminds me that my kids need to see this repentance-and-forgiveness cycle in action; they don’t need to see a mom who pretends to never sin. They need to see a mom who asks her Lord, and her family, for forgiveness and then tries again. They need to see that mistakes brushed under the rug only breed more sin, instead of effectively dealing with them straight on.

How grateful I am for His forgiveness. I don’t deserve it, yet He gives it in abundance. It truly yields the best life. I am grateful for the best Teacher, that I might learn and then pass on this knowledge to my children. I am grateful that I can pray and ask the Lord for help, in my own life and in regard to my children. He is so good!

“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered.”
Psalm 32:1

Amen!

His Care of Creation || Friday Magnify

"Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together."
Psalm 34:3

If you look closely on the left leaf, you’ll see a little black dot. You may be familiar with what it is - this is a common childhood experience! The dot is the head of a caterpillar, ready to come out of its egg. Our neighbor offered us some of her milkweed a few days ago; she had noticed eggs on the leaves and wanted my kids to have the chance to watch them hatch and grow. (Another thanksgiving of mine this week - our thoughtful neighbor.)

In the last two days we have watched the three itty bitty eggs hatch, and three itty bitty caterpillars emerge and start eating the milkweed leaves. They will grow and grow until they decide it’s time to stop and make a cocoon. Not long after that we will, hopefully, watch them emerge as Monarch butterflies!

How much of life happens around us when we are about our own business?! I could never possibly keep track of it all, and yet our God does. He watches over every single person on the planet, as well as every other living thing. So much happens in the spaces we rarely see. But He sees it, and never loses sight of any of it. He holds each part of our universe together, in just the right way. How incredible, how vast His reach!

This week I am humbled by His creativity and care for creation. And so very thankful He lets us be part of it and learn about what He has made and kept. Stop this weekend and take a peek at the world around you - may it renew your awe of Him!

“When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of man that You visit him?
For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
And You have crowned him with glory and honor.
You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,
All sheep and oxen -
Even the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air,
And the fish of the sea
That pass through the paths of the seas.
O Lord our Lord,
How excellent is Your name in all the earth!”
Psalm 8:3-9