One of the goals in our marriage is to stay out of debt, so when we bought this house, it was decided that we would take it room by room, fixing things, decorating things, painting walls, etc., as we could afford them. There are so many things that I want to do, that I think I need to do, but when I really think about it, I mean really, really put things into perspective, I realize that the most important things in making this house our home, we already have.
There are the basics, a roof over our head, running water (except that one night…), a bed to sleep in, etc. But there are other things, the irreplaceable things…the things that if the house was on fire, those are the things I would grab...
The footprints of our daughters, Allison and Emily
There are the basics, a roof over our head, running water (except that one night…), a bed to sleep in, etc. But there are other things, the irreplaceable things…the things that if the house was on fire, those are the things I would grab...
The footprints of our daughters, Allison and Emily
Photographs of our daughters that the hospital took after they were born
My joy box (everything from cards from Mike to a piece of the blanket I carried around when I was a baby)
Mike’s guitar
A picture of Christy (my sister) and me in front of our grandparent's house
A picture of Nana, my grandmother
The lyrics to the song Mike wrote and sang for me for our wedding
Our wedding quilt that my mom made us and the matching baby quilt she made for the girls with the leftover fabric
Pain and loss hit us square in the face the day our daughters were born and passed. Since then, some things don’t seem as important anymore. Please hear me, I still want my house to be beautiful and to have the right lamp on the right table. I still shop and exhaust all of my options before deciding on a pillow for my sofa. I want things to be pretty. I believe God wants my house to be beautiful because he gave me the desire to make it beautiful. He has blessed us with jobs and a desire to raise a family within these four walls. I guess what I am trying to say is that I need to be reminded that sometimes it's not about the stuff. It's about who He wants me to be.
When I'm gone, will people say, "she had a beautiful house and always looked put together. " I have to say, that would be nice. But instead, I think my true desire is for someone to say, "Yeah, she had a beautiful house and a beautiful family, but more importantly, she loved her Jesus and it showed."
I know the items that I listed are technically earthly things and I can't take them with me when I go. But those are the things that have made me the person I am today. Those things are home to me and they are a part of my story. Each one of them hold a lifetime of memories and have drawn me closer to Jesus.
What things make you who are you?
8 comments:
Sarah,
The story of who you are was written from the beginning of time by the perfect Author. I am blessed beyond measure to see first hand part of your story. The final chapter will be written when we are celebrating together, ALL of us in heaven one day.
Your love for Jesus is showing... thorough it all.
Have fun at the flea market! Show us what you find.
PS If I had to grab something in our house, I would grab our wedding album.
Well said, it' so easy to loose perspective and want for "worldly things." It's a constant struggle to remember that a perfect beautiful house isn't what is really important. Thanks for the sweet reminder!
I've always said that if our house caught on fire, after I made sure my family got out safely, the one thing I'd grab would be my scrapbooks (I don't know how I'd carry them all though!). There are so many memories in them!
Thanks for such a beautiful post. And such a good reminder about what's really important.
Sarah. Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment. I love comments. I have to admit I hit and run without commenting sometimes and I always feel guilty!
Please do come back and I'll be reading through your blog today to catch up on you. I already know your sister Christy will be a heart friend and I imagine you will, also, just from one read.
Susan
Oh my goodness! You are such a beautiful person, inside and out. I literally had chills when I was looking at your site. You are a true inspiration to me, and I will be back to check in often. Thanks for visiting my blog! May God richly bless you :)
Hi Sarah! Thanks for your comment on my blog! I just realized that you are Christy's sister (or is Christy your sister?) :)
Wow! What a thought provoking post and question...I am really not sure what "things" make who I am. I moved around soooo much growing up that we always had to part with things. Toys that I loved weren't always able to make the trip with us, etc. What I came to realize is that as long as I have the love of my family and my faith I could survive without certain things in life.
Though I must admit I LOVE my books! :)
I am sorry for your lose. I probably wouldn;t grab anything except for my family as everything is replacable.
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