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Monday, May 6, 2013

Blessed At Home #1: My Quiet Place


Welcome to the very first week of Blessed At Home!  Please visit the Contributor Page to read more about this excellent ministry from some of your favorite homemaking bloggers.

Our Featured Contributor this week is Pamela from A Sheltering Tree:


"I’m Pamela Kuhn, a girl in love with her Lord and addicted to the grace He gives.  I’ve been married to my RB for 37 years.  I’m mother to three girls:  Melanie, 29, Emily 20, and Sarah who lives with Jesus and will forever be 8 months in my heart. I have four sweet grandbabies who warm this Mawmaw’s heart. My passion is encouragement—I call it sheltering—and am filled with joy when I’m crafting little gifts for others, teaching people to shelter or using my words to bless others.  If my Kindle can be found, I’m probably right there with it. 

Reading is my favorite past time (although I say it’s necessary for my career) and while non-fiction is my fav, I will read anything—even posters at the eye doctor. Candles set the mood in my home and remind me to be a light in this dark world.  My deepest desire is that others see Jesus in me."


This week we're talking about our quiet places.  Depending on your season of life, your quiet place may be very similar to, or much different from, those you'll read about here.  I hope you're blessed and inspired as you get to know more about our quiet places.



Kate, Teaching What Is Good
Long before I was married, my quiet place was not limited to one spot: walks through the park, drives to the beach and even hikes in the mountains were regular places where I'd seek solitude from the hubbub of life around me and spend time with the Lord. As times changed, so did my opportunities for finding those quiet places.

Since becoming a mother, eventually of 8, it has often been hard to find places of quiet and solitude in our home. There is always someone calling my name, someone needing my input, someone needing intervention, someone needing. In the early years when all of my children were still quite young (and while my husband was in graduate school and working 16-20 hour days, 7 days a week) any moment of quiet meant I was taking a nap so that I could continue to minister to my children and my husband.

I remember those early years and the times when I became desperate for time off from the constant giving of motherhood. In our home, the joke became a box of Calgon bubble bath outside the door when my husband came home. If he saw that, he knew that I needed to have a respite, a time of solitude, even if only for 30 minutes. And to the tub I would go while he cared for the children and their various needs.

Like Pavlov and his dogs, I hear the tub water running and I start planning some time alone!

My quiet place has become my bathtub! I line the tub and bathroom with candles, I sprinkle some fragrant oils or salts in the tub, I grab my inflatable pillow, put on praise music and sink deep into the water and the Word. While it is not my time of intense study of the scriptures, my bath time each night is my time of sweet fellowship with the Lord. I love the imagery of letting His Spirit wash over and flow through me that the bath waters conjur up. And I love to have that hour each night to worship, pray and mediate on the Lord. I love my quiet place of water, relaxation and refreshment!



Misty, Simply Helping Him
My quiet place is time reserved for God and I alone. I get up early in the morning, before my little blessings stumble out of bed. While the time I spend is not in abundance, it is quiet and focused. I stumbled upon Good Morning Girls last year, and have LOVED following the S.O.A.P. method of Bible Study. It truly has changed my life. As a mother, I often felt that my quiet time wasn't good enough because it was less time than before my little blessings. How untrue this is! It is not the amount of time that is key, it's the commitment and having a heart focused on seeking the Lord!



Tauna, Proverbial Homemaker
"Be still and know that I am God." - Ps. 46:10a

With all the noise and go go go of parenting my little babes, I need more of God. Many days, as I teach and train and cook and clean and build and plan... My heart is not calm. My mind is not clear. 

I desire the peace of God to permeate my day. God, who knows the details of this season of life, still calls me to silence and solitude in Him. 

Silence and Solitude are disciplines of a life desperate for God. And they are the breathing in and out of His presence, whether we sit and listen for a time or create space in the moment. 

I have been reading Invitation to Solitude and Silence by Ruth Haley Barton, and while I am at the beginnings of this journey, I have already experienced much blessing.

The practices of solitude and silence set aside ourselves to "know that I am God" in a powerful way. God's presence and His movement come in to our daily rhythm, breaking up strongholds and breathing life into every interaction.

"Without solitude it is virtually impossible to live a spiritual life... We do not take the spiritual life seriously if we do not set aside some time to be with God and listen to him." - Henri Nouwen

How I'm Pursuing Solitude and Silence
- hiding in the bathroom in the desperate moments (haha!) and pausing to pray and listen
- Reading God's word every morning and taking time to listen silently
- listening as I work the gardens
- slowing down and creating space in the moment to dwell on God's presence
- taking yearly overnight prayer retreats
- reading Barton's book and following her suggestions for pursuing solitude and silence 

Do you pursue the practices of solitude and silence? Would you like to learn more about it?





Kendra, Living in the Shoe
When I think of "my quiet place", my mind is immediately drawn to the meadow.  I love this place!  And I don't go nearly often enough.  Of course, it's best to get there before the cows do!  But this is the place where quietness seeps into your soul, and the beauty of spring draws your mind to the Creator of life.  There are no cell phones here .... only the sound of the rushing creek and the call of the geese.  The grass is so green it reminds me of heaven.  What must heaven be like if there is a place so pretty like this down here on earth?

In the quiet, without all the distractions of my home, it is easier to pray.  To talk to God and to hear His whispering answer.  



Mrs. Smith, Just a Country Girl
"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands."  Psalm 19:1 says it all for me on days like today.  It is very easy for me to come to my quiet place because I only need to walk outside and marvel at all that God has created.

I find great peace in everything outdoors.  I will admit that I'm not a winter lover, and that we have about 8 or 9 wintery months...but I'm trying.  Spring and summer are another story, though.  I can sit for
hours on my porch swing and just listen and watch.  It amazes me how every bird has a song, every cloud has a shape, every insect has a purpose.  I am especially fond of peep frogs, which are very short
lived in the spring, and crickets in the summer.

I love to stick my hands into the dirt and plant
something--anything--and watch it grow through the three short growing months we have here.  How something can start as a tiny seed and grow into an amazing plant full of many different "jobs" is just so
awesome!

I love the smell of freshly cut grass (allergies and all!) and waking up to one of many birds chirping outside my window at 4:30 in the morning during the longest days of summer.  I just love it.  It's like
God just tapped me on the shoulder saying, "Wake up, it's a new day full of possibilities."  Where my particular house is settled, I get to see it all.  With the woods around me and a river across the road,
I have birds, deer, bears, ducks, geese, squirrels, turkeys, and on and on.  Not to mention all the different trees blowing in the breeze and flowers all around... it's just quiet.

And this is where I find God.  My quiet place.  A time to reflect, share my thoughts or problems, thank Him for all this wonderful creation that is His; yet He has loaned to me to enjoy with my family every single day.  I don't read or write or take any sort of
technology with me to the back yard.  I just enjoy what is.  What He would have it be, and nothing more.  It's my quiet place.  My favorite place--all the natural beauty that God created.



 Christy
Everyone needs their own "quiet place." A place just to reflect on their life and to appreciate the gifts God has given to them. A place to thank the Lord and a place to hear what he is saying to them. 

As long as I can remember, I have found my peace in the sun. Whether it is on a rock by a small creek, or in my back yard on a quilt soaking up the rays.
My quiet place has changed many times over the years, but the setting has remained the same. It includes blue sky, water, (even if it is just an open hose) and of course, the sun.

At this time in my life, I am blessed to have a spa on my back deck. I dream and wait with anticipation all winter long about lying beside my semi-cool spa in the sun. It is my quiet place. My place to thank God for my life. 

We all need our quiet place even if it is only 20 minutes of free time in the bath. We need a place to go without interuptions to drink in the Lord's many blessings.

I hope each person reading this will take a few minutes each day to find a quiet place of their own.


Judith, WholeHearted Home
For any mother, quiet is hard to come by unless your children are sleeping. It is refreshing just to get alone when life gets overwhelming and find the peace and calm that only Jesus can give. My Quiet Place is where I can get near to the heart of God whether it be in the middle of the day's business with my children or alone.

My Quiet Place is best found before the crack of dawn when my home is quiet. Once the sun comes up the children are up, and happy or whiny chatter can shatter the stillness of the early morning. For some reason, if I miss finding my quiet place soon after I get up, I won't find it for the rest of the day. Duty calls my name and I have neglected the most vital time of my day.

An attractive setting for my quiet place makes it inviting. A desk or the kitchen table is good when you want to spread out your Bible and notebook for an in-depth study. When I just need time to commune with the Lord, the clutter of papers and notebooks are left on the desk as I sit in the bedroom rocker with my Bible and notebook.

When babies are up in the night, the slider in the living room provides my quiet place with the dimly lit room giving the atmosphere of nearness to God.

When all else fails and the morning slipped away, my quiet time becomes the restroom where no one dare follow. Keeping this room clean will make it pleasant while you find solace, rest, and renewal for your weary heart.

My Quiet Place is my altar, it is my Peniel, my Bethel, it is the place where I get alone to worship  God and receive His grace for the day or the moment of need.

Have you built an altar in your life where you call upon God?

Daniel had a quiet time three times a day. His quiet place was kneeling by the window thrown wide open!!

He prayed.

THAT is reality with God.

I go to my quiet place to seek God with all of my heart.


You are as real as your quiet time,
Nothing else in life.
You are as safe as your quiet time,
Nothing else in life.


Near to the heart of God,
A place where sin cannot molest,
Near to the heart of God.

There is a place of comfort sweet,
Near to the heart of God,
A place where we our Savior meet,
Near to the heart of God.
There is a place of full release,


Near to the heart of God,
A place where all is joy and peace,
Near to the heart of God.
O Jesus, blest Redeemer,


Sent from the heart of God,
Hold us, who wait before Thee,
Near to the heart of God.



Thank you so much to Kendra and Judith for contributing photos this week!

Hope In Every Season is on Facebook!  If you like what you've read here, please follow me and keep up with the latest posts.



Linking with:

Motivate Me Monday 
Modest Monday @ The Modest Mom 
Matrimonial Monday @ A Proverbs 31 Wife 
Make the Scene Monday @ Alderberry Hill 
Inspire Me Monday @ Create With Joy 
Masterpiece Monday @ BoogieBoard Cottage 
A Round Tuit @ Creating My Way to Success 
Monday Funday @ C.R.A.F.T. 
Better Mom Mondays
Manic Monday @ Cupcake-n-Bake
Mommy Mondays
Making Your Home Sing Monday
Mommie Mondays @ Sew Crafty Angel
Monday's Musings
Monday Meetup
RachelWojo.com
A Return to Loveliness @ A Delightsome Life
Cottage Style Party @ Lavender Garden Cottage 
Teach Me Tuesday @ Growing Home
Tutorial Tuesdays with Hope Studios
Courtship Connection
Women Helping Women @ Teaching What Is Good 
Domestically Divine @ Far Above Rubies
(Titus 2)s Days @ Time Warp Wife
Tending the Home Tuesday
The Bliss Project Linkup @ Grace-Full Intentions
Wisdom Wednesdays @Simply Helping Him
Winsome Wednesday @ My Daily Walk in His Grace
Whole-Hearted Home Wednesdays 
Encourage One Another @ Deep Roots at Home
A Wise Woman Builds Her Home
Home Link Up at Raising Arrows
Homemaking Link Up @ Raising Homemakers
Home @ Rose Chintz Cottage  
Watcha Work-Up Wednesday 
What's It Wednesday @ Ivy and Elephants 
Simple Living Wednesdays @ Our Simple Farm
Shoe Lace Linkup @ Living In the Shoe
Homemaking Party @ Hope In Every Season
Thursday Favorite Things @ Katherine's Corner
Strut Your Stuff Thursday @ Somewhat Simple
Pearls and Lace Thursday @ Faith, Grace and Crafts
Legacy Leaver Thursday @ Leaving a Legacy
Thriving Thursday @ Serving Joyfully
Homeacre Hop 
Tutorials, Tips and Tidbits @ Stone Gable  
Desire to Inspire @ A Royal Daughter
Think Tank Thursday @ Saving4Six 
Home Sweet Home @ The Charm of Home 
Open House @ Bernideen's Tea Time Blog 
Share Your Cup Thursday @ Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson
Thoughtful Thursday @ Found the Marbles 
Inspiration Friday @ Dear Creatives
Show and Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home
Family Fun Friday @ Happy and Blessed Home
Farm Girl Friday @ Let This Mind Be In You
Fit & Frugal Family Friday
Show and Tell Saturday @ Be Different, Act Normal
Or So She Says...
Finding the Pretty & Delicious @ Your Homebased Mom
30 Min. Linkup @ 30 Days
Sharing Creative Ideas @ Made By Joey  
Show Me Saturday

Sunday Showcase Party@Under the Table and Dreaming 
Sundae Scoop @ I heart nap time
The Creative Homemaker Hop 
Sunny Simple Sunday @ Sunny Simple Life
One More Time
Sunday Blog Hop @ Cuddlebug Cuties

15 comments:

  1. To each of you ladies who contributed (not talking about me) I just want to say how much you blessed me through what you shared about YOUR Quiet Place. It makes me want to get outside, take a bubble bath, get the book on solitude, or light some candles to remind me of God's light. Every word just blessed me and blessed me this morning.

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  2. I love quiet places. Found you via Boogie Board Cottage. I'm your newest follower. You can find me decorating, painting and baking on HickoryTrail

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  3. What wonderful messages! Thanks to all the contributors! Sometimes I get so busy I forget to breathe (so to speak) and quiet seems very far away. I am very blessed to have this reminder today.

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  4. I love this! Having a quiet place is so important! I recently wrote a post about my quiet place... Down by the sea! http://throughgraceandcoffee.blogspot.ca/2013/04/down-by-sea.html

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  5. This is so special...thanks for sharing! This would be perfect to link-up to my new series - "Create It Thursday." It's live now! http://www.lambertslately.com/2013/05/create-it-thursday-1.html

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  6. What a lovely idea! I enjoyed reading what a quiet place meant to each person. We're all different, aren't we?

    Thanks so much for linking up to the "Making Your Home Sing Monday" linky party today! :)

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  7. thanks for sharing at Friday Follow Along! Have a great weekend.
    www.leahinspired.com

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  8. Wow what an awesome post!!! I have a spot too..in my craft room I have an old cushy chair and have had it for years. I keep it because I always prefer it to any other! It's my place to study and read and have my time with the Lord.
    Thanks so much to each of you ladies for sharing your wonderful examples of where and how you spend time with the Lord.
    Blessings,
    Doni

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  9. Thank you for taking the time to stop by and share about y'all's quiet places! It truly is a place we each need to have! May the Lord bless you as you seek Him in your quiet place! :)

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  10. This is really beautiful. It is so wonderful to find a quiet place - so restorative - loved reading each lady's story. I do appreciate you sharing with A Return to Loveliness,
    Kathy

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  11. Escaping from all the noise this world has to offer does wonders for ones soul. My quiet place is being in Nature. Strolling through my own gardens each morning even does the trick. Thanks for sharing with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

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  12. I so love a quite place all to myself! I am new from southern charm! I would love for you to check out my blog and follow me back! Nicole

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  13. Nice meeting you all. Thanks for sharing on the HomeAcre Hop. Come back and join us this week: http://everythinghomewithcarol.com/self-sufficient-homeacre-hop-and-green-circle-grove-giveaway

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  14. Finding & being quiet is so important. Thanks for sharing & linking up @ DearCreatives.com Theresa PS Hope to see you again soon!

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  15. Wow! Nice to "meet" you all.
    Thanks for sharing at The Creative HomeAcre Hop!
    Hope to see you again this week!
    http://back2basichealth.blogspot.com/search/label/creative%20homeacre%20hop

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Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment! I read each one of them and love to respond back to those who visit! Please consider signing up for EMAIL NOTICES so you'll have a reminder of our weekly HOMEMAKING PARTY---and more! Have a wonderful day!

Mrs. Sarah Coller

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