When the world around us seems to be spinning with fear, tragedy and chaos,
we must remain calm and secure in our homes for our children and our families.
We homemakers must make it our task to perfume our homes with flowers –
flowers of grace and strength in times of trouble and fear.
Flowers of prayer (praying together as well as in private).
Flowers of peaceful meals with healthy foods, quiet books and talks,
family games, discussions and movies.
Flowers emit beauty as well as perfume.
We must keep up appearances, our own as well as our home.
Everyone is comfortable when we are comfortable, but everyone is more passionate
about their own appearance when we are passionate about ours and pleasant to behold.
Everyone is happy when the home is clean and in order.
And who doesn’t appreciate a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers on a table or cabinet?
Or a chance to see that special china or tea service, tablecloth or wall grouping?
As Christians, we are “in this world but we are not of this world”. (Heaven is our home.)
Biblically speaking, we are above the chaos and sin that wrecks the world around us,
(meaning that we are safe from spiritual doom)
but we have the responsibility to work that much harder
to protect ourselves and those in our charge from being impaired or harmed by it.
Because when we do this, we are not only perfuming our own home
with flowers of grace and beauty, but these have ripple effects
on the wider world around us, outside our own homes.
~ Gwen of IRISH ACRES
Spot on, Gwen! We set the temper of our home!