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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

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August 6, 2012

Beautiful Imperfection~A Simply Sunday Special Guest





We are just so thrilled to have a very special guest with us today.
Please help us welcome Lauren from mercyINK!
Hello sweet At the Picket Fence readers!
What a tremendous blessing to be sharing with you for today’s Simply Sunday.
My name is Lauren and I’m the gal behind mercyINK, a graphic design shop and blog. The heart of my blog is to inspire women to create meaningful, purposeful homes on a thrifty budget; But way more than that, mercyINK is about cultivating faith in our hearts and in the hearts of our children. My greatest desire is to know Christ, and to make Him known.
One of the challenges in blogging, I think, is the illusion that is often created of perfection. Fabulously staged photos and eloquent words often paint a picture of perfection.
Perfect family, perfect house, perfect kids. Perfect. Perfect. Perfect. It all appears so delightful, doesn’t it?

{Source}
Don’t get me wrong; I do stage my photos and I love to write powerfully crafted prose, but my heart is also to be real and authentic and let you know I’m a human being with three wild kids and really, a rather messy house on most days.
Lest you think I fall into this category of perfect people or perfect blog, I wanted to assure today:
I am completely imperfect, just like the rest of us.

As a young mama to three littles five and under, I so often fall short. Like, every. single. day. Somehow, motherhood has brought forth my greatest weaknesses and selfishness.
In my mind, there’s this pretty picture of the mama I long to be: gentle, loving, attentive, calm…
But my reality?
Really, I’m pretty good at getting annoyed. At losing my temper. At venting some big, grown up thoughts on little tiny innocent minds.
At wanting a break from my little angels. At wanting more time for me.
I make a lot of mistakes.

Several months ago, the pastor of our church returned from a trip to the Holy Land. I could sense a renewed passion and focused vision as he preached a powerful message he called: The Greatest Question (click the link for October 30, 2011 to listen).
In Matthew 16:13, Jesus comes to Caesarea Philippi and asks his disciples “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
And the disciples reply, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” (v.14)
But Jesus says “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Peter’s reply that Jesus is the Messiah is joy to Jesus’ heart. Peter is saying that Jesus is the King, the Redeemer, the promised Christ. Yet just moments after Peter declares Jesus to be the Christ, and Jesus in turn declares Peter blessed and the rock upon which Jesus will build his church (Mt.16:17-20), Peter makes what Pastor Kerry deemed the greatest mistake:
“From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!” (Mt.16:21-22)
The greatest mistake is that we tell Jesus WHAT kind of King He will be: We may think we understand who Jesus is and that He is our King, but if we think of Him as an earthly King, we’ve missed the mark.
When Peter told Jesus he would not, could not possibly be killed, he told Jesus what kind of king he believed him to be.
After all, what kind of glorious King would come to die? Peter rebuked Jesus because He did not fully understand the question. He did not fully understand the great depths of Jesus’ love for us, not to simply reign as a natural, earthly king, but as the sovereign, eternal King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Sent to die for each of us. For my imperfect, mistake-filled life. For yours.

A few weeks after hearing that message on the Greatest Question (& the greatest mistake), I read another post on one of my favorite blogs, Katie Davis,  (Oh, and let this serve as my warning: reading Katie’s blog, hearing her story, will rock your world).
On that day, in that particular post, Katie wrote about being one of God’s “favorites”:
“One of His favorites. That is what I have felt like these last two weeks. Lavished with love. But isn’t that what He wants every one of His children to feel, all the time? Each and every one of us created perfectly in His image. Each one cherished. Each one “one of His favorites”. How would life change if we thought of each other as such? If each person that approached us we treated as beloved of God, cherished by God, one of God’s favorite people.”

You see, when we understand the true answer to the Greatest Question, we understand that we are indeed, each one, God’s favorites. Because who He is is love. It is death on an old cross for our sin, paid with His very life.
But the story does not end there.

He rose. And we too are risen to new life in Him.
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal.2:20)

A few days after hearing this message and reading Katie’s post, I spent some one-on-one time with my daughter, my oldest. When I’m busy in the day to day with three little ones, the oldest one often gets the least attention. I think I expect more of her than I should, because she’s the big girl in the house, but often I have to remind myself she is still just 5.
It struck me as the boys had gone to sleep and I sat at the kitchen table for a late night {at 8:00 pm} snack with her: if I love as Christ loves, should not each of my own children feel that they are my favorite? That they are treasured in a special, lavish way by their mommy?
I have so much to learn from my children. And so much to learn from my Jesus, the One and Only King of Kings, who gave His all for my life. He is gentle, loving, and just.
He is not impatient with me. He does not get annoyed at me.
He doesn’t lose His temper with me or vent to me in language I can’t understand.
He talks to me on my level.
He doesn’t want a break from me or tell me that He can’t spend time with me right now because He needs a little time to himself.
Jesus, let me learn from You!

Jesus, may my life be a response to your great question; a true reflection of the who You really are. In being mommy, sometimes my kids are the hardest people around me to love. But they are each your very favorites. May I love them in such a way. Not barking out orders, or raising my voice, or impatiently rushing them on to the next thing/place/activity. But loving them in a way that says to them, “You are the love of my life! I’m listening to every word. I hear your hurts and your heart. I see your mistakes but I forgive them; we’ll work at this stuff together. As long as it takes. As many times as you falter. Because you are so worth it. You are incredible and special and made in His image. You are treasured. And more than anything, you are loved, my sweet child. You are my very favorite.”
* * * *
Heather and Vanessa: Thank you so much for having me today! Readers, thank you for hearing my heart. I would be honored to have you stop by mercyINK for more inspiration and encouragement for your heart & home. Facebook | twitter | etsy
Lauren, you have ministered to us today and we believe that God has given you the gift of encouraging others by sharing your own journey of Faith. Thank you so much for blessing us with these truth-filled words today. We are grateful to have you as a Picket Fence Sponsor and friend!
Heather and Vanessa

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Comments

  1. sweet european dreams says

    August 5, 2012 at 2:43 PM

    Wow. Truly beautiful words! It’s nice to hop on my blog list and get some new decor inspiration, but it’s especially nice to be inspired from within. Thanks so much for sharing this word with us – I am blessed! -diane

    Reply
  2. NanaDiana says

    August 5, 2012 at 4:45 PM

    Wonderful message here- I agree- it seems there is so much perfection in the world of blogging that most people feel they fall short of the standard that has been set. Them the blessing comes along from someone that is REAL. A REAL Mom with REAL life issues-and lets us know that she is NOT perfect. Thank Heavens for people like Lauren. GREAT post- xo Diana

    Reply
    • Lauren @mercyINK says

      August 6, 2012 at 3:20 AM

      Diana- Appreciate your kind words! Yes, I am all too REAL most days, lol! pray you had a lovely weekend! 🙂
      -lauren
      mercyinkblog.com

      Reply
  3. Jocelyn says

    August 5, 2012 at 7:46 PM

    Beautiful!! Love love love hearing from other moms who desire to be authentic. I so appreciate your vulnerability. Your words echo many of my own recent thoughts.

    Reply
  4. Sue says

    August 5, 2012 at 8:08 PM

    Beautiful. I surely needed this; it has been a tough few days. Thank you!

    Reply
  5. Bounced Blessings says

    August 5, 2012 at 5:17 PM

    Beautiful, Inspirational & Cause To Reflect. . . Even Mommies (like me) Of Grown Children Can Find Much To Take Away From Lauren’s Words!

    Thank you For A Wonderful Faith Based Sharing!

    Keep Bouncing!

    Reply
  6. Lauren @ mercy(INK) says

    August 6, 2012 at 3:22 AM

    Really so blessed to be here today! Thank you ladies for all the heartfelt comments… you’ve encouraged me today 🙂

    -lauren

    Reply
  7. Judy says

    August 6, 2012 at 6:35 PM

    What a wonderful post. I stopped by her blog to tell Lauren so directly.

    Reply
  8. doctors excuse says

    August 8, 2012 at 6:46 AM

    The good news is… you will probably meet so many great bloggers! Atlanta is a hotbed of blogging talent!Your home is gorgeous.

    Reply

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The month of June is coming to a close and it has The month of June is coming to a close and it has been JAM packed! The highlight by far though was my son's graduation from high school. When I started blogging, he was only 6 years old and some of you have been apart of my community here for that entire time. Now, he's 19 and there is a reason parents are told not to blink because the years truly do go faster than I ever could have imagined. He has become such an incredible young man we are so excited to see how God is going to unfold the next chapter of his life. We celebrated with parties galore (SO many open houses to attend!) and made memories we'll forever cherish. My mama heart was filled to bursting with the joy of it all! Now we're taking some time to just enjoy these warm, summer days making even more memories because, when you’re at this stage of parenting, you know all too well how much you need to grasp every opportunity to spend time together.

I hope your summer is off to a great start too dear friends! 🪴
“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts o “And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Happy first day of summer dear friends!! I can’t believe it’s been so long since I posted something new here but life has been crazy. I’ll have some new photos of house projects and life events to share with you soon but, got now, I’m just going to enjoy this gorgeous first day of summer after our ridiculously long, wet spring. ☀️
“It was June, and the world smelled of roses. Th “It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside.” (Maud Hart Lovelace) 

Welcome June!
“No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom “No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation.”
General Douglas MacArthur

Grateful today and every day for those who were vigilant to the point of death in the preservation of our freedom. May we honor their sacrifice by being vigilant too. #memorialday
“Those who know your name trust in you, for you, “Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.” Psalm 9:10
This is one of my most favorite projects from my b This is one of my most favorite projects from my book Life in Season! 

Because, if heaven has a fragrance, I’m fairly certain it smells like lilacs.

I think that somewhere along the way the verse in the Bible that said, ‘heaven will smell like lilacs’ just got lost in translation. But it HAD to have been in there at some point, right?

When I bury my head in the blossoms (which I absolutely MUST do every single time I walk past them), I immediately feel a stirring in my soul.

It seems like I wait forever for my lilac tree to bloom. Every year I anxiously watch as the buds begin to form on the branches and then when the blossoms finally burst forth I begin that agonizing process of deciding the absolute perfect moment to snip them and bring them inside.

And then, after all of that waiting and watching it’s just over…done. Because, unlike heaven, lilacs don’t last for an eternity. So, making my own lilac room spray seemed like the perfect way to enjoy their fragrance long after the blossoms have faded.

Here’s how to make it! Ingredients: Water, Vodka, Lilac fragrance oil. Directions: Fill spray bottle with 50/50 ratio of water to vodka. Add 12 drops of lilac oil. Give it a shake, spray and if the scent isn’t strong enough, simply add a few more drops of lilac oil.

Once you’ve made this lilac scented room spray you will be very tempted to spray it in every room in your house. And someone may want to use it in the bathroom to cover up other less…ummmm….pleasing aromas.

But, do not, I repeat do NOT, let them.

You’ve captured the fragrance of heaven in a bottle and you wouldn’t want to go and tarnish it now would you? 😉
We had two back to back days of sunshine (the most We had two back to back days of sunshine (the most we’ve had in a LONG time) and now we are back to pouring rain. This has officially confirmed what I’ve know to be true for awhile now.

I’m a MUCH better version of myself when the sun is shining! 🤪 So I’ll just be over here today plotting and planning how my husband and I can be snowbirds someday when the kids are out of the house.

If you could spend your winters (and apparently most of spring too!) in any part of the country, where would it be?
Happy weekend sweet friends!! We’ve had a LOT of Happy weekend sweet friends!! We’ve had a LOT of rain lately (which is saying something when you live in Oregon) and I’ll admit that it’s affecting my moods a bit. I feel like I’m dragging and struggling to find the energy to get stuff done. So don’t mind me if I’m over here looking at photos of my garden in the summertime and finding that it keeps me hopeful about those days to come. They will come, right?! 🤪. 

What are your favorite plants that you look forward to seeing in the summer?
We’re going to be giving our laundry room a make We’re going to be giving our laundry room a makeover soon. It’s LONG overdue! In fact, the folks from the counter company were just here taking measurements. While we have made some simple, inexpensive updates over the years, it still has many of the original elements from when the house was built in 1992.

Two of our bathrooms are also in need of major makeovers. And we’ve saved up enough money over the years to tackle those projects. But, for the most part, we made the decision to use the bulk of that money in another way. While we knew that it was financially wise to invest in our house, we also knew that the greatest investment we could make was in our children. 

I’ll admit, there are times where I see other people doing massive overhauls of their entire home in a matter of months and I feel a prick of envy. But, we decided that if our choice was between waiting a bit longer to enjoy a renovated bathroom or going on adventures as a family, we would choose adventures every time. And we don’t regret that decision for a single second. It’s not that we haven’t tackled home projects (we’ve done a lot!). It’s just that it’s been a slow and steady process. 

Most recently, we let our son pick where we would travel for spring break since this is his senior year of high school and we are trying to make up for lost time. With so much of life ‘paused’ for two years, we have appreciated these moments more than ever. And, since he’ll be heading to college in the fall, we are very aware of how important it is to spend this time together while we still have a modicum of control over everyone’s schedules.

We have many years left to remodel our home but only so much time left to make memories with our children.

And, while I’m always happy to look around my home and see rooms that are updated and more reflecting of our style, it doesn’t compare to the joy I feel when I look around my home and see the people I love the most who have been shaped by the many adventures we’ve experienced together.
Happy Saturday!! After endless days of rain (and h Happy Saturday!! After endless days of rain (and hail and snow) we are finally getting some sunshine and warmer temperatures. I’ll be honest, it’s really affected my spirits having one gloomy day after the next. So this is a much needed reprieve. Our cherry trees are showing off outside my kitchen window and we plan to get outside and make the most of these days while we have them.

What’s the weather like where you are?
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