Sanctuary of Home

Tribute to Life

4/11/2023

She was a first generation American. The third of six children born to Lebanese immigrants. She was my Grandma Rose.

Her life, like most of ours, was ordinary. It was filled with sorrow: the loss of her brother to a snow mobile accident...he was only in his 40s. The loss of her husband, suddenly, next to her...he was only in his early 40s. So was she, left with 3 kids to raise on her own.

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Seeing Cracks

4/11/2023

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As we sang the song in the pew I looked out at the sun shining through the stained glass. I immediately saw it: a crack in the window. I pointed it out to my husband who gently responded, "You really notice cracks. I saw that one in the cement {another crack I had previously pointed out to him} and it is very small."

I've pondered this interaction for a time. I came to the point where I had to ask myself, "Do I only see the cracks?"

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Finding Joy

4/11/2023

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"Don't apologize for merriment and what-not. It's just what would happen."
~ Eeyore

Ever get stuck in the everyday mundane routine?

Laundry. Dishes. Picking up after the kids or your spouse or the dog or yourself. Working. Sleeping. Eating. Doing it all over again the next day.

It's easy to allow routine to steal our joy. Especially if you naturally tend toward a serious temperament.

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Practicing Thankfulness

4/4/2023

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But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
~ Galatians 5:22-23, Holy Bible, NIV

What do you practice in your life?

I think about the saying: "Practice makes perfect!" I don't know anyone who didn't hear that growing up. And what did it refer to? Perhaps working to achieve excellence in a sport, or musically, or even to master mathematics.

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Amazing Grace

4/4/2023

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"Amazing grace! How sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me! I once was lost but now am found,
was blind but now I see."
~ John Newton

I'm currently reading Phillip Yancey's book, What's So Amazing About Grace? It is wrecking me in a good way.

I've heard grace defined as unearned, unmerited favor. In a society where everything seems to be based on earning and merit, this concept arrives foreign and unknown.

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Tribute to Life

Seeing Cracks

Finding Joy

Practicing Thankfulness

Amazing Grace

Mellany Zepelak

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