Meet Me on the Front Porch

If you have ever been to my house and been on a “tour” of it, you have heard me say that the front porch is my absolute favorite thing about our house. It is the place in our home where we can enjoy the fresh air of outside, the beautiful six acres of vibrant green grass, the towering pines, oaks, and dogwoods, and the sounds of birds and other little critters. During the spring, our property blossoms with close to fifty dogwood trees. They are absolutely beautiful, and it is probably one of my favorite times to enjoy the front porch. The spring also brings wonderful breezes, new growth, and soaking, refreshing rains. I can’t decide if I enjoy life on the porch more on a beautiful, sunny spring day or a calming, replenishing rainy day. Summertime is another favorite time to enjoy the front porch, because as a teacher, I feel like I can actually stop and breath in all that the front porch has to offer. During the school year, the hustle and bustle of life takes over leaving me spent most days. I so enjoy the morning coffee and rocking on the front porch, lunch dates with my girls at the farm table on the front porch, and summertime sunsets drinking sweet tea on the front porch. Front porch sitting in the fall brings relief from the scorching Louisiana summers and a lot of football watching. If you know anything about the South and Louisiana, it’s that we love our football, family, and friends-not necessarily in that order. = ) During the winter, the porch is still a nice escape, although, it sometimes is a little too chilly for my liking. I do love adding fresh cedar from some of our cedar trees to the porch to decorate for Christmas, such a wonderful time of year waiting in anticipation for the celebration of the birth of our Savior.

I have had this “nudging,” I guess we will call it, that I should write. I felt that I needed to blog or have a website to leave something for my girls or help someone who is on a similar journey as I am. I have pushed this voice away just thinking it was another one of my many little side ambitions I was chasing after. After all, I have been passionate about a number of things including photography, wedding planning, party planning, remodeling, interior design, floral shop owner, and maybe a few other things. My husband was always listening to my next business plan although they weren’t very thought out. I have a creative side, but just haven’t quite figured out where it fits. I 100% feel that I was called to teaching, but I also feel that God has other things planned for me in addition to my life’s work of investing in children.

So one night while my husband, Richard, and I were on a date, we went to see a movie and eat dinner. We went to see the movie Case for Christ, and I left feeling like there was still this voice to which I was not quite giving enough attention. Richard out of the blue said, “I think you should write.” I was shocked and said, “What did you just say?” And he said, “I really think you should write!” It turned out he had been thinking about it for a while and so had I. It took this moment for me to understand this isn’t just some passing thought. I heard loud and clear that God wanted me to start writing. There was no denying it. Maybe running from it, but I definitely heard loud and clear that night. Richard has encouraged and supported some of my endeavors in the past, but he had never shown so much excitement, encouragement, and support before. He was completely confident that this was what I needed to do. It was like we were both on the same page-a page that Someone else authored. I was instantly filled with excitement that God could possibly use me-even if it was only to give something to my family that was a part of who I am. I always knew and believed God would use me if I allowed Him, but it was such a special moment to know without a doubt that He was calling me.

Shortly after the excitement came FEAR. What if people don’t like what I write? What if the blog stinks and no one follows it? What if people are negative or critical toward me? I can’t write about MY personal experiences and emotions…that is opening up way too much. I can’t be that vulnerable. People’s opinions may change of me.

Some of those fears are rising up as I write this first post. BUT all I can do is be obedient to God. Who knows…my family may be the only people who actually will read and follow this blog. That’s okay…all I want is to obey what God has placed in my heart. After that, it is up to God how He decides to use it. I want to be vulnerable, to be obedient, to be sincere, to be encouraging, to be compassionate, to be genuine, to be honest. I want this blog to be a place where God can use me and my experiences and struggles to help others and for others to better understand God. Ultimately, it is all for His glory.

So what does all of this have to do with a front porch? Well, my front porch is the very place where I can go sit and reflect. It is where I can speak to and listen to God. It is where I can find peace, restoration, and joy. It is where I can verbalize fear and anger. It is where I can process struggles or just be reminded of the immense blessings in my life. It is that place where I can just be.

As I was pondering the name for this new blog, I wanted to connect somehow to this place of refuge, community, and inspiration for me.

I thought.

My husband thought.

I thought some more.

I bothered my husband a lot because I wanted the name to have meaning and weight and be the perfect description of what I hoped the blog could be.

One night at 2:00 am as I was feeding my youngest, I heard a whisper in my soul, “Meet me on the front porch.” I knew it was perfect. I felt like God was calling me to meet Him on the front porch to be in that holy place of connection and communion with Him. I also felt Him saying, “Invite others to that porch with you.”

So here I am….inviting you to meet me on the front porch; to take a journey with me to share with one another life’s joys and blessings, to face and shoulder the burdens and fears of one another, to see God and understand who He is, how great He is, and how much He loves us.

I believe He will meet us on the front porch and we will be amazed at how good and faithful He is.

“O taste and see that the Lord is good. How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!”

Psalm 34:8

 

Find your front porch-your place of quiet, stillness, refuge, and peace. Meet God there, and He will bless you immensely.

 

Shared with love,

Lindsay