I did my grocery shopping today. The biggest shop of the year, when I buy enough food to fill our Christmas table, and more. I’m making turkey, cranberry meatballs, maple glazed ham, perogy casserole, mashed potatoes, stuffing, carrots, and corn. And, if there’s any room left in their tummies, we’ll have Billy Miner Pie for dessert.
Earlier this month I decorated the tree. It was nice, but after looking at it for a week, I knew it needed something more. And so, I carried up the boxes we had in the basement and kept adding ornaments until every branch of the tree was full.
“No one’s going to care,” my husband said.
Probably not, but the thing is, I care. I’m preparing my house for the biggest birthday party of the year and I want my family to enjoy the feeling of home. Maybe they won’t notice the extra ornaments on the tree, the scent of vanilla cinnamon candles, or the fact that we’ve washed down the cupboards and floor. Maybe they won’t notice the way that I color matched the wrapping paper under the tree, or signed each one with my very best hand writing. Maybe they won’t notice the hand-sewn garland I made, or the wreath on the door, but I know they’ll feel welcomed and I know they’ll feel loved.
As I got to thinking about that today, I was reminded of Jesus, and how He’s gone ahead to prepare a place for the church. How He’s building a home for His bride.
He knows my heart, He calls me by name, and there’s no doubt in my mind that there’s love in the details.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t long for a mansion just over the hilltop, or a cottage below for that matter. I’m longing to see the wonderful face of my Father, to kneel in His presence, and to worship my Lord at His feet.
I long to be with my Father in heaven. After all, there’s no place like home.
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Tilling the Soil
Read John 14.
Planting Hope
My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. (John 14:2-3, NIV)
Darlene Schacht and her husband Michael live in Manitoba Canada where the summers are beautiful and the winters are cold. Together they’ve come to learn that relationships aren’t always easy, but that marriage, the way God intended it to be, is a treasure worth fighting for.
She began her publishing journey about twelve years ago when she pioneered one of the first online magazines for Christian women, known at the time as “Christian Women Online Magazine.” After three years, Darlene left CWO to blog as a solo author at Time-Warp Wife Ministries.
It was also during this transition that she worked alongside actress Candace Cameron Bure to write the NYT Best-Selling book, Reshaping it All: Motivation for Spiritual and Physical Fitness. Reshaping it All was the winner of both the 2011 USA Best Book Awards and the 2012 Christian Reading Retailers Choice Awards.
Author of more than 15 books, Darlene continues to write and to minister to her readers through her blog at TimeWarpWife.com.
Connect with Darlene:
Facebook: @timewarpwife
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You are loved by an almighty God,
Darlene Schacht
The Time-Warp Wife