Sacred in the Ordinary

Today's guest post is by Judy from Daily Blessings and Ben Makes Ten

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Take a look around you...what do you see when you take in the panorama of your home?


If all that you see is the clutter, or the fingerprints, or the chipped paint and holes in the walls...LOOK AGAIN...Look....and SEE the SACRED.


If God is the center of your life, your marriage, your family, your home school...then by virtue of His Holy Presence, the items in your home become SACRED.


Take your bed, for instance. What were your thoughts when you made it this morning?


Did you really GIVE it any thought? Or, did you mindlessly tuck in the covers as you were already considering the five thousand things you needed to accomplish today? Well, then...consider this invitation: Tomorrow, when you make you bed, think of it as SACRED.


This place where you lie down each night next to the one with whom you have chosen to spend your life...this bed, where all of the worries and tasks of the day are laid to rest...this place of respite and relaxation...this place where God, the Creator allows you the grace of joining with Him in the creation of NEW LIFE...this place where quiet is shared, and warmth is given, where love is present...as you make your bed tomorrow, THINK OF YOUR SPOUSE...pray for him to have JOY and PEACE in his work that day...THANK GOD for him (even if things are not going well between you), treasure and cherish the hours that you spend here with one another...do not take it for granted...for it is a GIFT...and it is SACRED.


And what about your dining room table? Yes, it might be getting wobbly as the years wear on, the knicks and scratches show, and you are tired of explaining to toddlers that it is NOT a stage on which to stand and sing...but the next time you look at it...SEE the SACRED...this is your place of family unity...a place to break bread, such an intimate thing...a place to look into the eyes of those you love most in this world...a place to gather at the end of a busy day...to laugh, to share, to discuss, even to try to be heard over the endless chatter of Littles, a place to welcome guests, a place to serve and pamper, a place that reminds you that "things are good" in life...because you have food, you have family, and you have HOME...just a table? Or...something SACRED?


How many times a day do you use your water? How many of those times do you see it as SACRED...this fresh clean water, with which God has blessed you...to cleanse yourself, to nourish and refresh yourself, to clean the things around you, to cook, to water your plants, to bathe your babies, and even to play with in warm weather...The next time you go to wash your hands, or stop for a drink, say a prayer of thanks for your water...and SEE the SACRED.


Don't forget your SCHOOL...so easy for us to take for granted...or worse yet...to feel it as burdensome or something getting in the way...EMBRACE your school tomorrow...SEE in it the SACRED! God has allowed you to bring your children along-side you to teach, to influence, to share with, to nurture, to love...the books, the papers, the lesson plans, the assignments waiting to be graded...these are all reminders of HOW BLESSED YOU ARE to home school...these things are the font of learning in your home...they are the means by which you raise your children to know, love, and serve the Lord...they are the tools and instruments by which your children (and YOU) are enlightened, enriched, and challenged...you are FREE in your school to INVITE GOD into your classes...ordinary? NO! SACRED!


Family life is such a beautiful gift and blessing from God...His hand is upon you, and therefore all that is ORDINARY becomes EXTRAORDINARY...all that He has touched is SACRED!


Look around you with HIS EYES today...see your home anew! Give thanks for all that surrounds you and know that NOTHING is ordinary where GOD is present. See your home...and SEE the "SACRED" in it!


Judy is busy keeping up with the eight of ten blessings who are still at home with her, and you can visit her at
http://www.momoften.webs.com/ and http://benmakesten.blogspot.com/


photo by chynna67