Well, life here in Charlotte has been rocking along just fine here lately. I mean, besides the riots and such going on in Uptown. That has, obviously, not been “just fine.” A sad situation, indeed. It makes the sermon from last week (before any of us knew what was about to happen in this city) even more meaningful. One of the points of the sermon, after exhorting us to realize our address is a sacred place and to settle in where God has us, was to SEEK the peace/welfare/shalom of my neighborhood and city. Jeremiah 29:7 says, “Seek the peace of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its peace you will have peace.” The word peace sometimes reads “welfare,” but both are translated from SHALOM. Therefinersfire.org explains it this way: Shalom is more than just simply peace; it is a complete peace. It is a feeling of contentment, completeness, wholeness, well being and harmony. According to Strong’s Concordance 7965 Shalom means completeness, wholeness, health, peace, welfare, safety, soundness, tranquility, prosperity, perfectness, fullness, rest, harmony, the absence of agitation or discord. Shalom comes from the root verb shalom meaning to be complete, perfect and full.
This past Sunday we were challenged to see each person as one made in the image of God and to continue to let this affect how we interact with anyone, in particularly, our neighbors. The church we have been visiting has had a Word from God each time we’ve been there. I love how God is so personal to His people! Another example of this was that Josh and I discovered a leak from the girls’ shower before leaving for church. We discussed how it could be a source of anxiety and worry–even frustration that would distract us from tuning in at church. Josh prayed for us before we got out of the truck and rolled our concerns over to the Lord because He cares for us! We went into a class and on the power point was the title of the lesson, “Anxiety, Worry and Frustration.” Ok, then. Amazing how God just knows.
Ok, that’s enough words. Let me see if I can share a few pictures with y’all. Some have wanted to see what our house is looking like. It’s a slow process, and we still aren’t settled, but we are getting there. This Wednesday we will get a wood burning stove installed, and I am happy about that! I think it will cozy up our living room. We also hired a yard guy to help get our grass looking better and to keep it clean when all of the leaves on those trees start to turn and fall!
So this is what our house looks like from the road as you drive up.
This is the side door that we use; it opens up into the sun room with the kitchen on the right.
This is the backyard from under the carport. It needs a ton of work, but for now, the sweet spot is the hammock…which I am sure will get even sweeter in the fall weather.
This is our front door, and that little black box is our mailbox. The postman walks the mail to my front door and puts it in that box. Isn’t that interesting? I have only lived in neighborhoods with mailboxes at the road, so this is different for me! The kids love it. They fuss over who gets to unlock the box and get the mail each day.
This is looking down our driveway from the carport.
This is one side of our living room. That little door opening to the right is my office area. Small, but quaint.
Here’s the other side. Still a work in progress, but it is much more “homey” than a couple of weeks ago!
This is the grocery store I go to. The Publix is literally going to be across the street from here. Also, there is a Chickfila, Bojangles and Krispy Kreme across the street. Dangerous.
So, that’s a little peek into the house. Maybe one day when it is all cleaned up and a little more settled, I will post some other pictures. The girls room is cute when it is clean. The school room works just fine, though it needs a rug. Mack’s room is great. Our room is just not coming together very well yet. I make the bed every day and then leave as soon as possible. One day I will be inspired to make it whatever it needs to be, but for now, it will have to do.
Happy Monday to you.