Grace at Home No. 462

Well, friends, March came in like a lamb in this part of the world, and it's definitely going out like a lion. We're expecting rain and thunderstorms today. I wonder where the old saying about March comes from? I guess it's a pretty good bet that the weather in March will be highly variable, isn't it?

No matter the weather in your neck of the woods, I am glad to welcome you here today for the Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes places of grace. Here are some highlights from last week's party.

Are you a college basketball fan? If you've been following the NCAA tournament, you already know that both of my "hometown teams" (Duke and UNC-Chapel Hill) are in the Final Four. Everyone in town is dreading that game—the regular season rivalry is intense enough! But if you don't have such a connection to the Final Four games, you might actually feel like hosting a basketball-themed party, and Lisa from Drugstore Divas has some great ideas for you.

Have you done any furniture shopping lately? I have: two of my sons are moving, and I've been scouting good buys for them. New furniture is expensive and these days it's often back-ordered, so we've been collecting secondhand buys. But Angela from Simply Beautiful by Angela goes even further—her husband found this console table on the roadside, and just look how she made it over!

Doing some Easter decorating? You'll be inspired by this beautiful centerpiece from Debra at Common Ground.

If you're looking for an easy Easter craft, Beth from Creatively Beth can help! Just look at this darling cottontail.

Need a fun and easy-to-make Easter treat? Alea from Premeditated Leftovers has a good idea for you: white chocolate covered pretzel rods.

Need a new recipe that's a bit more nutritious? Nancy from Nancy C shares her technique for making an easy Cobb salad.

Do you ever feel as though you don't have enough, but then you can scarcely close your closet doors? Jan from Aging with Ardor gives some real food for thought in this post.

If you're motivated to do some spring cleaning and decluttering, Donna from Soul Survival has some great advice for removing spiritual clutter from your life.

Thank you to everyone who joined last week! Now for this week's party. Here at the Grace at Home party, you can link up any post you've written that demonstrates how you're filling your space with truth, goodness, and beauty. I invite you to link posts about

• DIY projects
• decorating
• recipes
• hospitality
• homemaking tips
• parenting
• marriage
• faith
• self-care
• soul care

Whatever you do to make your home or sphere of influence a place of grace, I'd like to hear about it. Here's what I ask of you.  Please include the permalink to your post, not your blog's home page. Please let people know that you've linked up.  No more than three posts per person, please.  Note that if you link a post here, you are giving me permission to share your post, including a photo.  And visit at least one of the other party participants--that's what really makes it a party!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Prayers for the week VII

I'm grateful that many of you are joining me in prayer each day. What a joy it is to imagine folks of like mind praying together!

I like to start every day with the Lord's Prayer, and I pray throughout the day for various needs. But sometime during my workday, I like to pause and just spend a moment apart—a little time to re-orient my thoughts, a brief respite to center my thoughts once again on God.

If that sounds like something that would be nourishing to your soul, too, I'd love for you to join me. Here are small prayers to share for each day of the week.

Sunday

Pause for prayer: Lord, you are good, and we are grateful. Thank you for being a good and beautiful God, a God who deserves to be worshipped. You alone are worthy of our adoration. Our hearts are full as we consider your goodness, and with thanksgiving we praise your name. Amen.

Monday

Pause for prayer: Lord, you are our strength. Left to ourselves, we quickly discover just how weak we are. But your strength, like your love, endures forever. Help us to trust you more and more, believing that you will not fail, and we will sing your praise once again. Amen.

Tuesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, so many of our days are filled with mistakes. We wound with our words. We break hearts with our carelessness. We hurt ourselves and one another. We are sorry. Forgive us, we ask, and help us. Teach us to love people incredibly well, as you do. Amen.

Wednesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, we need you to guide us day by day, hour by hour; apart from you we can do nothing. Teach us your way of grace and goodness, please. Rescue us from darkness and show us how to live in the light of your everlasting love. Fill us with your peace. Amen.

Thursday

Pause for prayer: Lord, this week is winding down, but our task lists remain long. So once again we turn to you, and we ask you help us order our days. Show us what is most important to do and what we can let go. And help us to trust you for the outcomes. Amen.

Friday

Pause for prayer: Lord, as this work week draws to a close, we ask for your peace. There is much that we have had to leave undone, and this is worrisome to us. But you are greater than our worries, so once again we release them to you. Thank you for your care for us. Amen.

Saturday 

Pause for prayer: Lord, we give you thanks for all the good around us: the beauty of the earth, the glory of the skies, the love of family and friends. Help us to work with you to bring more and more good into the world. Amen.

In my mind's eye, I like to picture all of us pausing to pray these prayers at some point during each day. Isn't that a lovely thought?

Grace and peace to you this week!

Grace at Home No. 461

Happy Spring!

Around here, March "came in like a lamb," as the old saying goes, but since then the weather has been up and down. I'm always a little amused to realize that I have come to expect March to be ultra-springy, when in fact the first three weeks of it are still officially winter.

But now we have redbud and pear and cherry trees blooming to go along with the deciduous magnolias. Daffodils have been in full bloom for awhile. Some of our hardwood trees will be unfurling their leaves soon. And then all will be covered by thick pine dust, since North Carolina is a state of many pine trees. That's life, isn't it? We take the good along with the bad.

I am so glad to welcome you to today's Grace at Home party, where we acknowledge that life is full of good and bad but we celebrate the ways we make our homes places of grace and beauty. Here are some features from last week's party.

Are you setting up a home office? So many of us are working from home these days (including my husband!). You'll love looking at this elegant home office shared by Sandra from Dinner at Eight.

If you're setting off on a road trip this spring, you'll be glad to get some healthful snack ideas from Dave and Jamie at PhotoJeepers.

If escalating food prices have you working harder not to waste food (raising my hand), you'll be glad to learn how you can freeze onions from Melynda at Scratch Made Food for Hungry People.

Do you like to decorate for Easter? If so, here's some great inspiration for you.

An easy-to-make Easter egg wreath from Regina at Saved from Salvage

 A cute Easter "carrot" craft from Beth at Creatively Beth

Adorable carrots made from clothespins from Laura at Me and My Inklings

Several fun Easter decor ideas from Carol at Blue Sky at Home

A welcoming Easter entry from Penny at Penny's Vintage Home

Lots of Easter decor from dear Debbie at Debbie-Dabble Blog, who goes all out for holidays

And if you're hosting an Easter gathering, you'll be glad to get these ideas:

This darling bunny cheese ball from Linda at Crafts a la Mode

These adorable (and surprisingly easy to make) cupcakes from Niky at The House on Silverado

Yummy Easter brunch punch from Lois at Walking on Sunshine Recipes

An easy no-cooking Easter snack mix for the kiddos from Crystal at Crystal and Co.

If you're going through a hard time, you'll be glad to gain insight from Nylse at LifeNotes Encouragement—insight gained from a prize fight!

Thank you to everyone who joined last week! Now for this week's party. Here at the Grace at Home party, you can link up any post you've written that demonstrates how you're filling your space with truth, goodness, and beauty. I invite you to link posts about

• DIY projects
• decorating
• recipes
• hospitality
• homemaking tips
• parenting
• marriage
• faith
• self-care
• soul care

Whatever you do to make your home or sphere of influence a place of grace, I'd like to hear about it. Here's what I ask of you.  Please include the permalink to your post, not your blog's home page. Please let people know that you've linked up.  No more than three posts per person, please.  Note that if you link a post here, you are giving me permission to share your post, including a photo.  And visit at least one of the other party participants--that's what really makes it a party! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Prayers for the week VI

Today I'm sharing small daily prayers again. I'm grateful to have heard from a number of you who have said that you're praying along with me. What a privilege.

I like to start every day with the Lord's Prayer, and I pray throughout the day for various needs. But sometime during my workday, I like to pause and just spend a moment apart—a little time to re-orient my thoughts, a brief respite to center my thoughts once again on God.

If that sounds like something that would be nourishing to your soul, too, I'd love for you to join me. Here are small prayers to share for each day of the week.

Sunday

Pause for prayer: Lord, we are stunned by all the happenings in our world. So much is disquieting, even terrifying, and we feel helpless. But we know that you are not helpless: you are good and strong and faithful. So we worship you and ask for your help. Help us, Lord. Amen.

Monday

Pause for prayer: Lord, as we start this new week, we ask you to help us guard our hearts and our tongues. May we keep our hearts focused on what is good and right and helpful. And may we use our tongues to speak words of encouragement and to impart grace to one another. Amen.

Tuesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, the details of this week’s work are bearing down upon us. We feel the pressure mounting. So we pause. We let go of tension. We inhale your grace and exhale your peace. We ask for your help, and we trust you to provide. Thank you for being with us. Amen.

Wednesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, help. So much of the news of our world is distressing. At times we feel as though we lurch from crisis to crisis with no respite. Yet we know that you are good and that you care for us. Help us to hold on to hope and to leave our worries with you. Amen.

Thursday

Pause for prayer: Lord, you have always given strength for the day. So now, weak as we may feel, we trust that you will give us strength once again. We surrender ourselves into your care, believing that you love us and that you will provide what we need. Thank you. Amen.

Friday

Pause for prayer: Lord, we are so grateful that in a world of upheaval and heartbreak, you are constant and faithful and good. There is so much to worry us, God, but we never have to worry about whether you love us. We are thankful that you are with us and for us, always. Amen.

Saturday 

Pause for prayer: Lord, we come before you today simply to express our gratitude for all the ways you’ve blessed us: the things we see plus the countless things we can’t see…the people who love us and whom we love…the very air we breathe. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Amen.

In my mind's eye, I like to picture all of us pausing to pray these prayers at some point during each day. Isn't that a lovely thought?

Grace and peace to you this week!

Grace at Home No. 460

Hello, friends! Top o' the mornin' to you this St. Patrick's Day!

I'm glad to welcome you to the Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes places of grace and beauty. Here are some highlights from last week's party.

The start of Spring is THIS WEEK (can I get a "hallelujah"?). If you're hoping to decorate your home for Spring, check out this home tour from Shelley at Calypso in the Country.

Want to make a special piece for your spring decorating? Follow the directions from Denise at My Home of All Seasons to create this beautiful lantern.

For inexpensive but darling spring decor, try making these bunnies from clothespins! Beth from Creatively Beth shows you how.

Need some help in hanging artwork in your home? Jamie (who is a master at design basics) from Anderson + Grant can help.

Need something new to hang on your walls? Jennifer from Studio 27 shows you how to make this moss cork board. So cool!

Do you like to serve garlic bread alongside your dinner entrees? Jen from Cincy Shopper shows you how to make it quickly and deliciously in an air fryer. 

If you're like me, you're feeling rushed and harried these days—so you'll be glad to read these words of wisdom about rest from Michele Morin at Living Our Days.

Thank you to everyone who joined last week! Now for this week's party. Here at the Grace at Home party, you can link up any post you've written that demonstrates how you're filling your space with truth, goodness, and beauty. I invite you to link posts about

• DIY projects
• decorating
• recipes
• hospitality
• homemaking tips
• parenting
• marriage
• faith
• self-care
• soul care

Whatever you do to make your home or sphere of influence a place of grace, I'd like to hear about it. Here's what I ask of you.  Please include the permalink to your post, not your blog's home page. Please let people know that you've linked up.  No more than three posts per person, please.  Note that if you link a post here, you are giving me permission to share your post, including a photo.  And visit at least one of the other party participants--that's what really makes it a party! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Prayers for the Week V

A blessed day to you, friend! I'm so glad to share a week's worth of short prayers for us to pray together.

I like to start every day with the Lord's Prayer, and I pray throughout the day for various needs. But sometime during my workday, I like to pause and just spend a moment apart—a little time to re-orient my thoughts, a brief respite to center my thoughts once again on God.

If that sounds like something that would be nourishing to your soul, too, I'd love for you to join me. Here are small prayers to share for each day of the week.

Sunday

Pause for prayer: Lord, the world contains so much that is bad, but you are good. We worship you. We praise you and thank you for being worthy of worship: immensely kind, thoroughly loving, completely good. Blessed be your name, now and forever. Amen.

Monday

Pause for prayer: Lord, as we begin this week, we ask your help to approach everything we do in loving humility. Help us not be deceived into feelings of self-righteousness. Instead, may we regard one another as fellow pilgrims, extending grace just as we have received it. Amen.

Tuesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, our calendars are bursting; our to-do lists are overflowing; our headlines are alarming. We need know that you are God, but we’re finding it hard to be still. Quiet our hearts, we ask. Calm our minds. Remind us of your great strength and love. Amen.

Wednesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, the week is halfway over, and our work and worries seem to multiply—but your grace abounds all the more. Thank you for the way you care for us. Even when we feel overwhelmed, help us never to forget your constant love for us and presence with us. Amen.

Thursday

Pause for prayer: Lord, you are the source of strength and peace. But now we are weary and we are fretful. Help us once again, we ask. Provide what we need, help us to be thankful and generous, and teach us that peace comes from reliance on you rather than on ourselves. Amen.

Friday

Pause for prayer: Lord, as this week draws to a close, help us to practice gratitude for what we’ve been able to do instead of obsessing over what we haven’t. Thank you for giving us grace to face challenges as they arise. Help us now to impart grace to one another. Amen.

Saturday 

Pause for prayer: Lord, we thank you that we can bring all our concerns and anxieties to you. Thank you for caring about the whole world and about each of our individual struggles. We know that you are good, you are with us and for us, and you are able to help us. Thank you. Amen.

I like to imagine all of us pausing to pray these prayers at some point during each day. Will you join me?

Grace and peace to you this week!

Grace at Home No. 459

Hello and welcome! I'm so glad to have you here for the Grace at Home party, where we celebrate all the ways we make our homes places of grace and beauty.

With all that's going on in the world, it does my heart good to remember the words usually called "The Serenity Prayer": 

Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change

The courage to change the things I can

And the wisdom to know the difference. Amen.

 

There's so much we can't control, but we can control how we act in our own homes, and it does my heart good to try to make my home a place of grace and beauty.

Here are some features from last week's party I think you'll enjoy.

Need some home decor inspiration? Then you'll want to take a tour of Renae's house at French Country Farmhouse.

If you just want to make a small decor change in your home, why not start with some new throw pillows? Ann at The Apple Street Cottage shares a full tutorial for an easy sewing project. I'm going to follow her instructions!

St. Patrick's Day is right around the corner. If you'd like to add a bit of St. Patrick's fun to your home decor, check out this post from MaryJo at MasterPIECES of my Life.

Want to make a simple treat to serve on St. Patrick's Day? Try one of these!

Marshmallow Pops from Crystal at Crystal and Co.

Shamrock Rice Krispie Treats from Jody at Premeditated Leftovers

Shamrock Pretzels from Drugstore Divas

Looking for some fun activities for kids on St. Patrick's Day? Try one of these.

St. Patrick's Day bingo from Lindsay at ArtsyFartsy Mama

Leprechaun Letter Search from ABC's of Literacy

Need a healthful new main dish recipe? I do! So I was glad to get this recipe for Balsamic Glazed Salmon from Carol at Comfort Spring.

Last but not least, you'll be challenged and comforted by answering the question, "How Well Do We Know Him?" posed by Barbara at Stray Thoughts.

Thank you to everyone who joined last week! Now for this week's party. Here at the Grace at Home party, you can link up any post you've written that demonstrates how you're filling your space with truth, goodness, and beauty. I invite you to link posts about

• DIY projects
• decorating
• recipes
• hospitality
• homemaking tips
• parenting
• marriage
• faith
• self-care
• soul care

Whatever you do to make your home or sphere of influence a place of grace, I'd like to hear about it. Here's what I ask of you.  Please include the permalink to your post, not your blog's home page. Please let people know that you've linked up.  No more than three posts per person, please.  Note that if you link a post here, you are giving me permission to share your post, including a photo.  And visit at least one of the other party participants--that's what really makes it a party! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Prayers for the week IV

I am being blessed by following a rhythm of posting little "pauses for prayer" for each day of the week. I hope that it's a blessing for you, too! I'd love to have you join me in short prayer every day.

I like to start every day with the Lord's Prayer, and I pray throughout the day for various needs. But sometime during my workday, I like to pause and just spend a moment apart—a little time to re-orient my thoughts, a brief respite to center my thoughts once again on God.

If that sounds like something that would be nourishing to your soul, too, I'd love for you to join me. Here are small prayers to share for each day of the week.

Sunday

Pause for prayer: Lord, you are all-powerful, but you never abuse your power. Instead, you are near to the broken-hearted. Your heart is ever inclined to the suffering. Help us to become more like you: to eschew power, to love selflessly, and pour ourselves out for others. Amen.

Monday

Pause for prayer: Lord, as we begin this week, we ask for grace to do our work well. Help us with our priorities: show us what is most important and what can be done later, given to others, or left undone. Strengthen us to do what we must and to trust you with everything. Amen.

Tuesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, we are grateful that we can bring everything to you. Thank you for caring for us so lovingly, no matter what we’re concerned about. We want to become more like you, so that we can care lovingly for one another. Help us, we pray. Amen.

Wednesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, even as we remember that we are dust, help us now to live—not with heaviness of despair, but in understanding the weight of glory we hold as your image-bearers. Help us to make the most of the time we have to love you and to love one another well. Amen

Thursday

Pause for prayer: Lord, as we survey the landscape of constant conflict, we are tempted to cynicism or despair. But you offer us a different way: a way of faith, hope, and love; a path of righteousness, peace, and joy. Thank you for your grace. Help us walk with you. Amen.

Friday

Pause for prayer: Lord, as this week ends, we know we need rest. Yet the world is filled with so much unrest, it’s hard to settle our minds and spirits. We ask your blessing on the hurting and the vulnerable. Show us how to help them. Help us to trust you in all things. Amen.

Saturday 

Pause for prayer: Lord, in the words of your friend Trevor Hudson, "thank you for being the Light that shines into the darkness and has not been put out. Shine your Light into those dark places of our lives and our world that we may live in the surrounding darkness with faith, hope and love." Amen.

I love to picture in my mind's eye all of us pausing to pray these prayers at some point during each day. Won't you join me?

Grace and peace to you this week!