Imparting Grace

Thursday, March 3

Grace at Home No. 458

Friends, I'm so grateful to greet you today. . . and I can't help but think what a difference a week makes.

If you follow me on Instagram (and I'd love to see you there!), you might have seen this picture:

This is a 17th century bronze cross from Kyiv. It was given to me a number of years ago and is one of my prize possessions. It takes on new significance for me now.

I hardly know how to pray for all that’s going on in the world today. In the face of senseless violence and destruction I feel terribly helpless. But I trust that God is good, so I ask for help, especially for the most vulnerable. Be with them, Lord. And I ask that God will show us the way—the way to help, the way to respond to need, the way to think clearly and act faithfully.

Father have mercy. Jesus have mercy. Spirit have mercy.

And then this weekend I was stunned—although not surprised—by the news that one of my oldest blogging friends, Paula Skulina of Sweet Pea, died. I'm sure many of you knew Paula. You may have seen some of her projects featured here, since she was a regular participant in the Grace at Home party. I first "met" her online more than 10 years ago, and then we met at a Haven conference, where I found her to be just as kind and generous in real life as I knew her to be online. Here's a wonderful photo of Paula, from back before her cancer diagnosis:

Please join me in praying for Paula's husband Dave and Paula's mother, who is now battling cancer herself.

I am grateful for this blogging community, where we support one another in countless ways.

Here are a few highlights from last week's Grace at Home gathering.

Are you ready to decorate your home for Spring? Carol from Blue Sky at Home can help you create a springy entry in 11 easy steps.

If you're feeling crafty, you might like to visit Denise at My Home of All Seasons, who will show you how to make this spring wreath.

Looking forward to Spring Break with your kids? Dave and Jamie from PhotoJeepers have some road trip ideas for you.

Amanda at VeraVise Outdoor Living has Spring Break inspiration to share as well.

If you're like me, you've noticed a real jump in food prices. I'm making a concerted effort not to waste food, so I was glad to see this post from Melynda of Scratch Made Food for Hungry People. I had no idea you could freeze celery!

For the health of your soul, I heartily recommend following Lisa from Lisa Notes on Seeing God. I especially appreciated her recent post on not being understood.

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!

Sunday, February 27

Prayers for the week III

I've begun a rhythm of posting little "pauses for prayer" for each day of the week. 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 great and you are good, and we are grateful. Thank you for your love for us and your kindness to us. We worship you, and we are thankful that you are worthy of worship. You alone can handle adoration and be unspoiled by it. Glory be to you. Amen.

Monday

Pause for prayer:Lord, as this week gets underway, our minds rush ahead to all that needs to be done—and we often succumb to anxiety. Help us learn not to rely upon ourselves alone, but to trust you for guidance, wisdom, and strength, knowing that you really do care for us. Amen.

Tuesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, so many of our plans do not work out as we hope. So much is out of our control, so we ask for grace to practice self-control. Help us learn to treat ourselves and one another with compassion. May we learn to love people well, just as you do. Amen.

Wednesday

Pause for prayer: Lord, we need encouragement. We know you have provided so much goodness for us, but there’s so much bad in this world. Help us to look to you for everything we need and trust that you will continue to provide. Teach us. Help us grow in grace. Amen.

Thursday

Pause for prayer: Lord, we are dismayed and discouraged by all that is happening in the world. We feel helpless; we hardly know how to pray. But here we are, asking you for help. We especially ask you to be with the most vulnerable. Help us not to succumb to despair. Amen.

Friday

Pause for prayer: Lord, we come to you today with all our concerns, our worries, our heartbreak. We are weary. Thank you for letting us come to you with our burdens. Refresh our spirits so that we can help those who need our help. Make us instruments of peace, we ask. Amen.

Saturday

Pause for prayer: Lord, as this week ends, we find ourselves wondering what next week will bring. Help us to stay anchored in your love and to hold onto hope so that we may be better able to share your love and goodness with those who need it most. Lord, have mercy. Amen.

It gives me joy to imagine 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!

Thursday, February 24

Grace at Home No. 457

Hello, friends! I'm so 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. In these turbulent times, it's a treat for me to visit with you all.

It's such a privilege for me to host this little gathering every week. You know, link parties are considered by many to be a thing of the past—they were very popular a few years ago, but many bloggers have moved on to other pursuits.

I understand this. Many bloggers depend upon their blogs for income, and hosting a link party isn't necessarily a good way to bring in revenue. But I love the way this party has led me to meet many interesting people, and I feel honored to highlight the work of so many bloggers I admire. So here we are!

And now some highlights from last week's party.

Do you need a hidden spot for storing something small? Lisa from Fresh Vintage by Lisa shows you how to create these clever wooden boxes from old books.

Do you save shopping bags? I do this: I love having different sizes of paper bags on hand. But if you've collected quite a few, you might want to visit Patti from Pandora's Box to see how she used paper bags to create this cute stool for her dressing room.

Someone must have known that I've been having trouble with deciding what to cook for dinner, because I found several new recipes in last week's link-up. Check these out:

Kristy from Air Fryer Fanatics shared a recipe for Sesame Chicken