Grace at Home No. 239

Hello, friends, and welcome to this week's Grace at Home party! I'm glad you're here.

Here are some links from last week's party that caught my eye.

Kristine at The Painted Hive created these mini barn doors to hide a front-loading washing machine. So clever! She shares a tutorial so that you can make your own.

Ash at Just Measuring Up gives step-by-step instructions for building raised planter. Spring has already sprung in North Carolina, so I'm really interested in these.

Angela at Simply Beautiful shows how to reframe a cheap mirror. She started with a $5 mirror to create this beauty:

Jas from All That's Jas shared a recipe for Pan-Seared Pork Chops with Dijon Mustard Sauce. Don't these look yummy?

As for me, I shared my thoughts about Ash Wednesday, and I'd love to know what you think.

A big thank you to everyone who joined last week's party!  I'm so grateful for each person who links up each week. If you've been featured, feel free to grab the "I was featured" button.  I'd be so proud if you displayed it!

Now for this week's party!  Grace at Home is a place for you to share anything related to making your home a place of grace. 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 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!

From the ashes

Today some of us will attend an Ash Wednesday service.

Some of us will see folks with crosses on their foreheads and think, "What on earth is that about?"

Still others will see people with smudges on their foreheads and politely say, "You've got something on your face."

I've been each of the people listed above. I'd never heard of Ash Wednesday until I was a teenager, and lived close to New Orleans. There people celebrated throughout Mardi Gras, really whooped it up on Fat Tuesday, then went to church on Ash Wednesday.

To be honest, it was all Greek to me.

Later I learned about the season of Lent. For hundreds of years now, many Christians have marked the 40 days before Easter as a particular time of reflection and repentance. The Lenten season begins with Ash Wednesday. Special Ash Wednesday services may include a minister's making the sign of the cross upon the foreheads of congregants. The ashes themselves might even come from burning the palms left from Palm Sunday the year before. 

The imposition of ashes upon one's head is symbolic, of course, but what a powerful symbol!  With the placing of ashes on one's head comes the  entreaty: "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you will return," echoing God's words to Adam in Genesis 3:19. 

That admonishment is meant to call us to God by reminding us that our days are numbered.  In it I find echoes of Solomon's heartfelt cry, "Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth" (Ecclesiastes 12:1), or Paul's earnest plea, "Now is the day of salvation" (II Corinthians 6:2). 

I appreciate that reminder—no, I need the reminder.  

Just this week I learned of yet another person who has been diagnosed with cancer at a very young age. Last week I heard of a young person who was tragically killed in an accident. I'm reminded that our time here is fleeting. We are dust, and to dust we will return.

I am so apt to get caught up in the events of every day and the dreams of "some day" that I forget that today is a gift from God. Today is when I must be faithful to the work God has called me to do.

This day, I wear the sign of the cross, grateful for the reminder.

How about you? Do you observe Ash Wednesday? Do you participate in an observance of Lent? Why or why not? I'd love to learn from you! 

Grace at Home No. 238

Hello and welcome! I'm so glad you're here for this week's Grace at Home party, where we celebrate the ways we make our homes places of grace.

Here are some links from last week's party I thought you'd enjoy.

Handan at The Navage Patch put together a super-helpful post with everything you need to know about painting a room. So much useful information here!

Tarah at Grandma's House DIY converted her old furniture into outdoor furniture. Hmmm. . . this has the wheels of my mind turning.

Pattie at Olla-Podrida shared a recipe for Avocado Corn Salsa that looks absolutely delicious. I want to try this!

As for me, I reflected on the lesson I learned from the experience of dealing with falling trees in my yard. I'd love to know what you think!

A big thank you to everyone who joined last week's party!  I'm so grateful for each person who links up each week. If you've been featured, feel free to grab the "I was featured" button.  I'd be so proud if you displayed it!

Now for this week's party!  Grace at Home is a place for you to share anything related to making your home a place of grace. 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 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!