Rare and Beautiful

I would consider us settled into the rental-- with only 2 boxes behind the swing on the porch... which now I doubt we need since I really don’t know what’s in them.

Settled.

Check..... with my eyes on future blueprints.   A new nest without one piece of straw.

Over Christmas, I reacquainted myself with Pinterest..... a.k.a. time sucker, day waster, creativity charger.  Oh my.  The ingenuity of people is stunning.  So I began what I call virtual nesting---pinning realistic ideas, fat chance, but good ideas, and practical ideas.   Nesting.... virtually. And all the while trying to keep it all in perspective.

First house

Anyone who has done it before knows it’s a job-- building a house.  Decisions abound-- some I love to make and some I could care less about.  With gazillions of incredible ideas available at your fingertips, you’d think it’d make it easier.  Walls, floors, trim, tile, grout, backsplash, appliances, appliance arrangements, plugs, switches, interior doors, exterior doors, windows, tubs, showers, faucets, fixtures and lighting, exterior materials, porches, doorknobs, pulls, hinges, cabinetry, closets, fireplace placement, TV placement, colors-- OH SO MANY COLORS-- and so many places to put them.  Right now, so much of it is on paper, on my computer screen and it won’t be real for several months.  So we create a home, virtually, with dreams of it being a reality.

A few of my friends have recently built or remodeled and I remember one in particular telling me how tired she was of looking at all the design possibilities.  For one, it just gets overwhelming but the other reason was the weight of spending all that time on  temporary things when she knew there were more valuable ways to spend her hours.  I went into this process remembering her words.

Now I love stuff as much as the next person. Maybe more. I want a lovely home that reflects our family’s personality.  I’d like it to be a unique place {hardly likely since what I like doesn’t stray far from what’s so popular right now!}.  Of course I want it to be welcoming and comfortable for people to visit but especially for my family.  I could spend hours on end searching for ways to accomplish this and in all likelihood I will, but what if I miss the point?  When I read thoughts and quotes about home, of course, they are NEVER about the paint colors, the furniture, or the little things that sit around them.  It’s all about the things that hold the heartstrings tight.  Yes?

2nd house-- canNOT find a picture of the THIRD!!

I love this quote by Gladys Hunt,  “What is home? My favorite definition is "a safe place," a place where one is free from attack, a place where one experiences secure relationships and affirmation. It's a place where people share and understand each other. Its relationships are nurturing. The people in it do not need to be perfect; instead, they need to be honest, loving, supportive, recognizing a common humanity that makes all of us vulnerable.”

What child wouldn’t long for this place?

So there is perspective to keep in this process.  I can fill our home with beautiful things and welcoming colors, try my best at making it homey and comfy, but if my mind is not ready to engage with their many words or my to do’s are not held loosely or my mouth is not full of encouragement or my heart is not fully invested in theirs, the surroundings, despite the appearance, are cool, stiff, and suffocating.

And that’s with any house.

Even a rental.  I can’t forget that.

We prayed this verse as we built our last home:

By wisdom a house is built,
 and through understanding it is established;
through knowledge its rooms are filled
 with rare and beautiful treasures.
Proverbs 24:3-4

Sold..

Today, when I read “rare and beautiful treasures”, I think of three things:   two children growing up to bring glory to God in the unique way for which He created them, a marriage holding together joyfully by the grace of God praying to reflect his image as husband and wife, and a family fulfilling the mission God gave them in this short life.

Those are the treasures.  Rare and Beautiful.

Really?  A home can do that?  I am hanging on ~by faith~ to YES!