• Smell the sweet, the rank, the rich variety of each day • Contentment is a choice to be pursued and adopted • Life is full when surrounded by companions amid the messes • Warmth and security emanate from care and craft • Prepare and lay down what is needed for daily tasks • Work together and receive instruction and assistance humbly • Dedicated labor brings care and satisfaction • Build strongly and wisely • Home is shelter and a quiet place to curl up • Caring for needs fortifies and feeds minds and bodies • Give thanks for warm dry shelter • We are all part of a rich stew – sheep, donkey, horse, cow, cat, dog… • The seemingly lowest of places can give birth to the greatest of light • See the Light that pierces through the dust and grime of life
From “Reflections from the Everyday” Charlotte-Anne Allen
• A true home is where you can be yourself • We draw nourishment from positive words and actions • Create surroundings that protect you and don’t tear you down • Tough exteriors often conceal soft hearts • Beauty comes in many forms and colors • Good can be found in the midst of movement and storm • When mired in trouble seek the light • Care from others helps heal cracked hearts and lives • Make your home a place where others can find shelter • Do not let life’s true treasures rush by unnoticed • There is much to discover at a slower pace • God’s power moves us, forms us, and protects us
From “Reflections from the Everyday” Charlotte-Anne Allen
Many of us have fond memories of the childhood game “Hide and Seek”. What is it about this game that we love? Maybe it’s finding a good place to be “hidden” … or it could be the excitement of being the “seeker”. Then again, we simply had fun running around with our friends in the yard, especially in the early evenings as it grew dark. Occasionally one of us would grow tired or would feel the call of nature and slip back inside for a few minutes… which tended to frustrate the one searching!
This reminds me of the biblical comparisons of the shepherd searching for sheep, an image that the people of that day would have understood very well. Their sheep were a main source of livelihood, so a lost sheep would have been a great concern. Unlike us as children, easily slipping away for our Hide and Seek and then returning, the sheep became confused and anxious when they wandered away and were often unable to find their way back. Matthew and Luke told similar stories about searching for lost sheep. In them, the owner of a hundred sheep left ninety-nine safely together in the pasture and went searching diligently until he found the lost sheep and brought it back.
I love the way God connects with us by using things we can relate to. He spoke to Ezekiel, saying, “I myself will search for my sheep and look after them.” How comforting to recognize God as our great Shepherd who carries His rod and staff to defend us and guide us. Don’t we all need and appreciate reminders and encouragement that we’re not left stuck and alone?! No matter what our situation may be, He comes to us and brings us back into fellowship within His safe fold.
Whether we are hiding, lost, or have strayed away, we can be thankful that God watches over us and seeks us! My prayer is that we live each day secure in that promise. May we hear His gentle reminders that even when we cannot find Him, He stretches out His staff to bring us home to Him.
– Charlotte-Anne Allen Ezekiel 24, Matthew 18:12, Luke 15:4
The Still Small Voice 