Vision

Come join me for a spot of tea! My kitchen is a remarkable sight today. Wouldn’t you agree? Isn’t it just the coziest, most welcoming space you’ve ever seen??

Take a Tour!

Oh, I’m sorry, you couldn’t see it? You’ve got to use your mind’s eye, my friend! Just imagine it!

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Side note

As you can see, we’ve been a bit busy at our house. Not only have we been making a mess, we’ve been celebrating a new grandson! I couldn’t believe when I looked back and discovered it’s almost been a month since I last wrote . . . so much for my January plan to write twice each week this year! In any case, I’m back at it. Thanks for sticking with me. 🙂

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Back to My Remarkable Kitchen

“Remarkable.”

Worth remarking on.

Worth saying something about.

Worthy of mentioning.

Perhaps you don’t feel the same way about my kitchen, but you just might not be able to see it as I do, no matter how hard you try! You just don’t have the same vision and perspective that I have.

You haven’t been with us to choose the cabinets, or the stove, or the countertop, or even the new floor design and material.

Heavenly Perspective

Strange as it may seem, our kitchen today reminds me of God’s perspective on my life, and on anyone’s life who follows Christ.

We see the today, the right now, the mess and the inconvenience. God sees it all as steps in the process of molding us into the image of his Son.

One of my favorite scriptures from the Bible tells us something God said about himself:

I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’

Isaiah 46:10 NIV

Friend, He knows. He knows what you’re going through now, and He already knows how He will use it for his purposes and plans!

Think about it this way. If we tried to simply add our new kitchen to the old, we wouldn’t be able to move around in it. There would be two stoves, two sinks, and the cabinets (new + old) would cover the entire floor. Not exactly the kind of “flow” one would desire in a usable cooking space.

We had to rip out the old to make room for the new.

What will your new life in Christ look like in the end, after all of the pruning and getting rid of and cleaning out? While I don’t have all of the answers, you can be sure it will look a lot like these descriptions:

“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!” (Galatians 5:22-23 NLT)

“Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude” (1 Peter 3:8 NLT).

As you go along, you will look more and more like your Shepherd. If you count yourself as a follower of Christ, you can be sure of this: “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters” (Romans 8:29 NLT).

We are works in progress, friends. Be patient with yourself, and be patient with others who haven’t arrived at perfection yet either. That will never happen this side of heaven, so take a load off and put that expectation to rest!

Another favorite verse of many says, “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them” (Romans 8:28 NLT).

R E L A X . . .

You can trust your Master Designer. He’s got great plans for you!