by Cathy Baker | Faith |
by Cathy Baker
I don’t remember the last time we went to a garage sale, much less woke up at 6:20 a.m. to get there. But the pictures in the ad caught our eye. Brian, the vintage stereo equipment. Me, the painted blue chair.
SURROUND YOURSELF WITH BEAUTY
Strolling away from the garage sale with the blue chair in tow, Brian asked why I needed another funky chair. My corny words slipped out before I could catch them: Because it makes me smile (as did the price.) Who doesn’t want a pale-robin’s-egg-blue-chalk-painted-vintage chair? Okay, I know at least one person. Moving on.
My journey to a less-cluttered way of living came to a standstill earlier this year due to unexpected surgery with a host of other excuses on its heels. But temps are rising, as are my expectations.
“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” William Morris
My goal is to release anything and everything that I’ve kept based on guilt (I can’t throw away something _____ gave me), the “one day I might need it” excuse, or because one day I might need that pant size again. Otherwise, how can I make room for beauty?
Maybe I’m not alone. If you’re willing to share, I’d love to know your favorite excuse OR your favorite decluttering tip.
by Cathy Baker | Faith |
by Cathy Baker
Sunshine warms the body but
encouragement
warms the soul.
E-N-C-O-U-R-A-G-E-M-E-N-T
We were enjoying a meal, my friend and me. Well, maybe enjoying isn’t the right word. She was struggling to come to grips with possible changes in her life and I was struggling for the right words to say.
And then it happened. Joe, an older gentleman whose family once attended church with ours, approached our table out of nowhere and handed each of us a bouquet of flowers.
The hands that offered us the flowers were Joe’s—the heart that prompted them, however,
was God’s.
Joe bought flowers that morning having no idea how greatly God would use them to encourage a person he didn’t even know. He simply felt prompted to buy and share them with others.
Who could use a little encouragement in your sphere of influence this week?
After all, it’s funny what a few flowers will a do.
by Cathy Baker | Faith |
by Cathy Baker
“Lost time is
never found again.”
Benjamin Franklin
R-E-D-E-E-M-I-N-G
S-U-M-M-E-R
I made a lot of mistakes as a mom of two little boys, especially before coming to know Christ. But one thing I longed for as a young mother was to create good memories for my children. Today, I’m sharing three favorite family activities from way back when. Thankfully, rainy days and uncharted roads still offer much fun for children and adults alike.
On rainy days, pull out a lightweight sheet, gather a few chairs, and make a tent indoors. Fluffy pillows, popped corn, and a favorite movie are the perfect ingredients for a gaggle of giggles. Enjoying a picnic-type lunch under the sheet makes peanut butter and jelly taste even sweeter. Now I make tents for the grandchildren and they love it as much as their dads did all those years ago.
Play in the rain! I can’t say this happened often but when it did, it was fun. On days when lightening stays at bay but rain pours in buckets, take the kids outside, stick your tongues out and take it all in, for in a blink they’ll be taking their own children out to play. Trust me.
Explore! On a whim, I’d load up the boys to explore back roads we’d never traveled just to see where we’d end up. Of course, our final destination was located on a very familiar road offering up a well-acquainted dessert, the TCBY Shiver. (Who says I’m not adventurous?)
Your turn! Do you have a favorite activity you share (or shared) with the little ones in your life? We’d love to read about it, if so. Please share in the comment section.
“School teachers are not fully appreciated by parents
until it rains all day Saturday.” Unknown
by Cathy Baker | Faith |
by Cathy Baker
Is there anything more refreshing than a an ice cold slushy or a splash in the pool on a sweltering summer day?
R–E–F-R-E–S–H–M–E–N–T
Turns out, there is.
If you’ve attended the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writer’s Conference there’s one particular room where dreams have the potential to either take flight, or deflate as quickly as Tom Brady’s fleet of footballs. On one side of the table sit the agents, editors, publishers, etc. On the other, attendees waiting to pitch ideas or ask questions within their fifteen minute appointment. If an attendee arrives for their appointment and finds the person ahead of them still pitching past their allotted time, we’re told to quietly go stand behind the other conferee, signaling their time is up.
This year, while sharing my appointment time with Ginger Harrington, friend and fellow blogger, she noticed that her time immediately followed mine.
I smiled and told her to feel free to sneak up on me if my time ran over. Without hesitation she said, “I won’t be sneaking up on you, I’ll be standing there praying for you.”
This is one of many reasons I love the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writer’s Conference:
Prayer supersedes plans more often than not.
Our exchange that morning left me feeling refreshed—physically, emotionally, and especially spiritually. New perspectives have a way of doing that, don’t they?
So, how has God brought refreshment to your soul via another person lately?
(Congratulations to Ginger! She won 1st place in Blogging this year. Visit her site and you’ll see why.)
by Cathy Baker | Faith |
by Cathy Baker
Welcome to our June series, Summer Snippets!
Every Monday and Wednesday you’ll find a pithy post, perfect for hot summer days when a sip refreshes more than a guzzle.
I-N-S-P-I-R-A-T-I-O-N
inspire [in-spahyuh r]: to fill with an animating, quickening, or exalting influence.
Many of us land on the steps of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writer’s Conference in search of inspiration through newly forged friendships, positive appointments, and dynamic classes. Blue Ridge offers it all, but one bit of truth grounded my grandiose desires this year, and it was this: I can’t make anything happen. God is the Originator of all ideas. If we’re willing to do the hard work to see these ideas come to fruition, we can rest in knowing He goes before us, fully equipping us. He brings favor as He desires. He opens doors, and closes them. All for His glory.
Others inspire us
but only One indwells us
infusing our deepest desires with Sovereign power.
Father,
Take the desires you have placed on our hearts and bring them to fruition
for Your glory
in Your ways
and in Your timing,
for all personify a perfection we can trust.
What/who has recently served as an inspiration to you?
Speaking of inspiration, (how’s that for a segue?) I’m thrilled to announce that I’m now a regular contributor to Inspire A Fire! In fact, my first post is today. I’d love for you to hop over and take a look. Mark your calendar (or subscribe via email on Inspire A Fire’s site!) I’ll post the first Monday of every month.
In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.
Proverbs 16:9
by Cathy Baker | Faith |
by Cathy Baker
How do you spend Sunday afternoons?
Some of my favorite childhood memories are grounded in those mid-day hours. My step-mom and I made lemon blueberry muffins (with tart icing always dyed blue!) We’d gather around the TV to watch the Cowboys (Roger Staubach days) and during half-time we’d walk through nearby woods in search of kindling for our wood stove.
In the chapter, hammock: why you’re never too old for naptime, Laura J. Boggess has this to add about those days:
“I remember long afternoons under the shade of the apple tree—cooling our tongues with the juice of green apples, drifting in and out as the sun played chiaroscuro over our eyelids. And I remember the scent of summer rain through open windows as my little brother and I lay whispering on my bed—waiting for our bodies and minds to drift into an afternoon nap. Rest. As I gently touch these memories with the finger of my heart, a gale of longing wells up inside of me, and I wonder. When did I forget the way slowing down leads me into the arms of the Father?
My Jewish friends would not be surprised at this tender ache that pulses inside of me. “You are missing keeping the Sabbath,” one tells me. “Your life is too busy. How can you hear the voice of God amidst all that noise?” He believes this longing for rest is built up into my spirit; he believes God put it there.
Might practicing Sabbath be a way to meet that hunger and set a table to feed it? And so I began to sit with the longing. I start small—Sabbath moments. With each setting sun, I gather a bit of the day together at its edges and be still. These moments take me back under the apple tree—looking up through the branches at the clouds moving slowly across the sky. And I feel the promise of new life; the hunger is sated for just those short moments.” -Laura J. Boggess, Playdates with God, Having a Childlike Faith in a Grown-Up World
Our Turn…where was (or is) your “under the apple tree” kind of place where you gather the bits of your day and be still?
Coming up in June…
Kick off those sandals! Posts from our NEW series begin Monday, June 1st.
