The Art of Gathering

Breaking Bread and Building Bonds:

May 12, 2023May 14, 2023Leave a comment

The Power of Gathering Around the Table for Deeper Friendships

Sharing Meals Can Lead to Meaningful Connections and Stronger Relationships

Every move was exciting and I loved the idea of starting fresh in a new city and school. It made me adaptable, friendly, and resilient but it didn’t really allow for deep roots to grow in friendship.

Growing up I moved a lot. Every 2-3 years my dad’s job required him and I to move. I’ve lived in California, Florida, Indiana, all across the state of Ohio, finally landing for good in Dayton when I was 15. Every move was exciting and I loved the idea of starting fresh in a new city and school. It made me adaptable, friendly, and resilient but it didn’t really allow for deep roots to grow in friendship.

By the time I was 15, habits had already started forming in me to be somewhat guarded with who I trusted because friendships had always been temporary. Eventually Dayton became a permanent home for me: I met my high school sweetheart (now husband), I graduated high school and college, got married, and started growing our family. And yet, those habits in friendship I learned throughout my childhood continued to have an impact on my relationships.

Fast forward and I am a 28 year old mom of a young child and desperate for friendship. I felt the Lord stirring in me to leave my comfort zone and say yes to uncomfortable opportunities and in following that lead I found myself around the table with a group of women.

During that dinner, I heard women candidly speaking about life and God, not in a superficial way but in a deep and genuine way. I experienced a taste of grace and the word of God in Galatians 6:2 come to life as these women bore one another’s light and heavy burdens. From that moment on, I knew that this was the type of relational connection I wanted to seek out and be a part of.

In the last 4 years as we have continued to meet around the table, the table has gotten smaller and more intimate. This decision to sabbath together from striving and instead meet around the table to rest has changed everything. I can no longer hide behind doing but instead I have peeled back the layers of protection I had built around my heart like a fortress. My soul has room to breath and become more alive now.

In 2020 I wrote these words, “But even in the midst of uncertainty, I see glimpses of God’s grace in my circumstances—a compassionate husband, friendships I can admit my heartaches too (this is an answer to a many years long prayer), a reconciled relationship I had no idea was weighing so heavily on me, and a book by Emily P. Freeman called the Next Right Thing. All of these things have breathed life into my aching heart and have pointed me to the One who blesses, restores, strengthens, and gives abundantly.”

This has become even more evident as I have deliberately invested in my friend’s lives around the table. Each one of us has walked through grief and celebration in our time together. I have reveled in the absolute gift of experiencing joy and sorrow together. We have pointed one another to Christ and spurred each other on in doing good. I am forever changed and growing as we continue to do life in community together.

…”I experienced a taste of grace as the word of God in Galatians 6:2 come to life. They were women who bore one another’s light and heavy burdens. From that moment on, I knew that this was the type of relational connection I wanted to seek out and be a part of. ”
Bethany Weaver

With an awe-filled heart and praise to God I see the roots of friendship deepening, it all started with uncomfortably accepting an invitation to gather around the table.

I encourage you to bravely accept that invitation from the friend who recently reached out. Let’s be brave together and invite a friend to join you for coffee, after all we have both wanted to do that for awhile. Let the table be a beacon of hope for you too. He will meet you there because meeting around the table is his invitation too. He prepares a table for you to grow and become who you are meant to be, what goodness!

Gracefully, Bethany

About the Author:

Bethany is an Etsy shop owner and wholehearted maker and crafter. In her free time, she enjoys exploring new foods and hobbies, embracing the joy of discovery, and always learning along the way. Her dream Saturday would be trying a new breakfast place, lazily perusing a bookstore, and stopping by a vendor market to pick up all the fresh ingredients for a new dinner recipe…and if it’s summer, a dip in the pool 🙂
Make sure to check out all her beautiful creations here.

Because we love to bless our friends we are running a sweet giveaway on IG! Go enter and tell your friends!

Gracefully,

The Art of Gathering helps you prepare your heart for simple yet beautiful gatherings.

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Cooking From the Heart

April 20, 2023Leave a comment

by Natul Middlebrook

Hosting to Connect Rather Than Impress

I began putting what I learned to practice by hosting his colleagues on a regular basis. Their “oohs” and “aahs” over dinner made my hostess’ heart sing and I knew hospitality would become a big part of my life.

I was in my late twenties when I began to spread my foodie wings. Rachel Ray was my cooking mentor and 6:30 pm was sacred time. I’d make sure my newborn son was bathed, fed and tucked away before the start of 30 Minute Meals and there I would eagerly watch with pen and paper in hand. My husband was doing his medical residency at the time and I began putting what I learned to practice by hosting his colleagues on a regular basis. Their “oohs” and “aahs” over dinner made my hostess’ heart sing and I knew hospitality would become a big part of my life.

Although I appreciated the Venezuelan comfort foods of my childhood, I wanted to cook impressive, more refined foods for my guests. Not that stewed chicken legs, black beans and corn-meal arepas weren’t delicious, they just weren’t fit for entertaining.

I pored through Food and Wine and Saveur magazines and cooked foods I had never eaten before. I learned to roast brussel sprouts and garnish salads with fennel fronds and pan-sear halibut. I dared to roast whole legs of lamb and toss fish heads into water to make my own seafood stock.

I laugh now looking back at many of these feasts and remember being elbow-deep in turkey trying to break up a scuffle between my toddlers with my feet. There were lots of tears shed, snapping at children and bickering between my husband and I before dinner guests arrived. Most holiday feasts involved multiple runs to the store because either I was missing ingredients or I made a mistake that could not be fixed. Whew! Those days were stressful!

Over the years, I’ve learned that hospitality is less about entertaining and more about connecting with people. It’s less about impressing people and more about impressing on them how much you care about them. You don’t need high-end ribeyes and roasted brussel sprouts to do that. A simple bowl of black beans and crusty arepas does the trick just fine.

With my oldest being 18 and my youngest 9, I see now how fast the days roll by. So I’ve found ways to reconcile feasting with the work it takes to get the food on the table. I’ve gone back to my mother’s cooking. I use simple ingredients and do my best to make them shine without adding all the fluff. I’m cooking what I know and I think my people are better for it. Turns out my kids would rather eat a well-fried egg over white rice and plantain than filet mignon.

…”I’ve learned that hospitality is less about entertaining and more about connecting with people. It’s less about impressing people and more about impressing on them how much you care about them.”
Natul Middlebrook

Cooking is sort of like writing, it’s more authentic (and good) if you cook what you know rather than cook what you don’t know. It makes for more honest food because you cook from the heart rather than from your head.

I encourage you to go back to the flavors of your childhood. Make some phone calls and collect recipes from family members that cooked for you. If you don’t have someone that cooked for you, make a list of the foods you love to eat. Find those recipes and make them your own over time. It will be these flavors that your kids will look back on with fondness and longing. Not because they were fancy, but because they were yours.

Gracefully, Natul

About the Author:

Read about Natul in her own words.

Yes, my name is a little like mysterious tamale pie meets American apple pie, but I’ve come to embrace that I am both a first-generation Latina and a proud Texan.Along with my husband, Dr.Dan, we are raising the family of our dreams in a place I’m proud to call my hometown. We have our frantic days as a family of 7, but no matter how hurried or disappointing some days can be— the table is our reset, our time to pause and praise together.

Because of a difficult childhood, I’ve advocated for the fatherless and abused for 20 years. You can learn more about my work here and here. Caring for vulnerable children has led me to understand the significance of family as the catalyst for doing good in our communities and in the world. I believe doing good in our communities starts with loving Jesus and loving family. I became a classically trained chef because as a kid my mom loved us through the food she served us morning and evening. Even though our immigrant family struggled, there were lots of gatherings and music and laughter and there was always delicious food to be enjoyed. Food was a soft place that broke up the hardness of our lives. I’ve learned so much from amazing mamas that God put on my path. From one, I’ve learned how to encourage my kids towards excellence. From another I’ve learned patience and gentleness and another I’ve learned to plan and shop for my kids more effectively. If I had to say what I’ve taught my friends, it’s how to be intentional about seeking Jesus in the hearth of our home— the place where we gather to eat and talk.

I hope you have enjoyed this encouraging story from my friend Natul. To make things even more exciting there will be a giveaway up on IG inviting you to care for your souls through flavor and fair-trade!!

Gracefully,

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Real Life Hospitality

February 10, 2023February 10, 2023Leave a comment

by Emma Carsey

Runaway Imaginations Damper the True Vision of Hospitality

“This belief (or unbelief) frequently keeps me from opening up my home. Because it’s not perfect. It’s not how I imagine it to be. It’s not the way I *want* to host or prefer to host. It’s not the beautiful experience I so desperately wish I could offer.”

Early morning sunlight streams through the large windows in the kitchen and dining room. The windows are almost the length of the wall. We wanted our home to be bright when we were in the process of buying and thus, we even opted out of window treatments. Coffee is brewing, the diffuser is going, and I hear the sound of little feet upstairs. Our home is open concept so from my kitchen I can see the bar, the dining room, and the living room. The kitchen sink looks out over our property so I’ll be able to watch the kids play outside later this afternoon.

I start cracking eggs for breakfast that our chickens laid. My sister-in-law and her girls will be up soon. I’m so thankful we have a space to be able to host them. Our guest room is a beautiful bedroom with a Queen bed with the most comfortable linens, more big windows, and a huge fiddle leaf fig in the corner. Plus, it has its own bathroom. Plus, it’s got extra space for cots and we keep a crib in there as well. They came to play for a couple of days. We love hosting them. And the chance for our kids to be able to just play.

I stop for a minute and stare out in our home. My heart full of gratitude. My husband made our farmhouse table. I love that table. There are only five of us in our family but it seats twelve. We have a large extended family (by blood and by choice) and there are almost always people coming and going from our home and gathering at our table.

It’s easy for me to believe that this needs to be true in order to be a good host. My current kitchen has one small window over the sink, it faces the side of our neighbors house. The paint around the window is peeling. I don’t have a dishwasher or counter space. My house is divided by walls so I can’t see my children play in our living room or our dining room unless I physically turn around or walk out to see them (mostly because I’m always doing dishes). My husband works from home in our bedroom so space there is tight. Our middle two kiddos share a room and the baby gets his own space because he wakes easily. While we have a liveable third floor, the temperature isn’t regulated and if someone were to stay up there, I fear they’d wake the baby going up the creaky old stairs in our 106 year old home.

This belief (or unbelief) frequently keeps me from opening up my home. Because it’s not perfect. It’s not how I imagine it to be. It’s not the way I *want* to host or prefer to host. It’s not the beautiful experience I so desperately wish I could offer. Instead it’s a blow up mattress in our living room and metal folding chairs at our table to seat additional guests.

This weekend we actually hosted my brother and sister-in-law and their four children. It was not ideal, simply in that it’s not my ideal vision. But it’s ideal in the fact that my home does not dictate my hospitality. I read once that hosting is about you but hospitality is about them. And I can be (hope I was) incredibly hospitable in the home the Lord has given us now. Yes, it’s more work. But grabbing their favorite foods, leaving out glasses for water at night, having extra blankets and pillows, making them meals – none of that requires a big, beautiful farm house. It simply requires a heart that says “what’s mine is yours and you’re welcome here.”

…”none of that requires a big, beautiful farm house. It simply requires a heart that says “what’s mine is yours and you’re welcome here.”
Emma Carsey

With this renewed vision I will focus instead on what I can offer. I can offer a place to sit and gather around healthy food. I will let my creativity run wild in helping other busy moms put beautiful and affordable meals around their table so they can enjoy their loved ones. I will enjoy the sweet presence of Jesus in each one of the guests I welcome in, knowing that I would not have known that facet of God’s character but through them.Will you join me? Let’s embrace real life hospitality and remind our imaginations of the beauty that each interaction holds, set there especially for us.

About the Author: Emma Carsey is a wife and homeschool mom of 3. You can typically find her in the kitchen baking sourdough, cooking from an actual cookbook, or fetching snacks. She says, “If we were to grab dinner, I’d suggest tacos. We’d stay until closing and I’d ask you a ton of personal questions. I love drinks – all the drinks – red wine, black coffee, oat milk lattes, margaritas, white apple juice, ice water, mimosas, craft beer, hot tea, I love ‘em all! I’m just as much a breakfast enthusiast – breakfast burrito, waffles, frittata, grapefruit, donuts, oatmeal bake – yes, please! Also, a big fan of being outside, audiobooks, true crime, house slippers, hotels, Valentine’s Day, fleece pullovers, and of course, avocados.”

She is the master mind behind Avocado Meal Plans. At the heart of Avocado Meal Plans is coming together around the table. She believes that at tend of the day serving a healthy meal is a beautiful way to serve our loved ones. Emma knows that taking her passion and knowledge for planning affordable, healthy meals gives moms more time to gather around the table with their families. You will be glad you checked out her meal plans and find yourself having more time to savor the people around your table.

I hope you have enjoyed this encouraging story from my friend Emma. To make things even more exciting there will be a giveaway up on IG inviting you to savor life everyday!
Gracefully,

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Kindred Spirits Book Friends

February 4, 2023February 4, 202311 Comments

by Rachel Dodge

Finding Kindred Spirits

“Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think. It’s splendid to find out there are so many of them in the world.”
Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery

I received this text from a dear friend who joined my family for dinner recently. She doesn’t have a family of her own to share meals with and her message reminded me to value something I typically take for granted. I’m fortunate to have nightly meals with my husband and two children. Around the table, we talk about our days, sometimes laughing, other times commiserating, but always sharing our lives together. While these meal times meet our physical needs, this table fellowship also meets our emotional and spiritual needs.Gathering around books has always been a natural and necessary part of my life. When I was little, my father read the newspaper to me after work while my mother cooked dinner. Before nap time, during long car rides, in doctor’s waiting room–even in the middle of the night with the chicken pox–my mother read whole books to us. Everywhere we went, she kept a book (usually atattered copy of one of Laura Ingalls’ Little House on the Prairie books) tucked under her arm. It didn’t matter where we’d left off last; she just opened the book and start reading.

I supposed you could say we were the original read-aloudrevival family!

As I got older, my parents and brother and I continued to read out loud, swap books, and talk about literature around the dinner table and everywhere else, but I rarely found other people who liked reading as much as I did—and certainly not the sweet, old-fashioned books I enjoyed. At school, I was the one with my nose in a book, the one who loved to dress up as favorite literary characters, the one who liked the “olden days.” In high school and college, I was the reader, the writer, and the English major. Everywhere I went, I always kept eyes peeled for “kindred spirits”—those who shared my love for beautiful books, charming characters, and heart-warming stories.

Perhaps that’s why I find it so enchanting to have found so many kindred spirits, in recent years, who love to gather online to talk about books. I kind of feel like Anne Shirley when she said, “Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think. It’s splendid to find out there are so many of them in the world.” (Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery)

I used to think I just needed to grow up and let go of my quaint ideas about life and literature, but now I know that I just needed to find my people.

Thanks to the ability to gather online to discuss books, I now know I’m not the only one who loves old books and old-fashioned things. Other people love to read treasured classics over and over again, too! In fact, I found out that many people read for comfort, are “mood” readers like me, and love to discuss favorite books. Best of all, many of my bookish friends are also sisters in Christ, which means we get to fellowship together . . . and talk about books!

For those looking for ways to gather with others and foster genuine community around books, I think the best place to start is a buddy read (or group read-along). I’ll never forget readingLes Misérables in 2020 with a group of women from all around the world. That experience was epic in so many ways! I could have never slogged through it alone, but with my faithful reading buddies beside me, I knew I couldn’t give up. I can honestly say it’s one of my favorite books now, but I don’t know if I love Les Mis because it’s so good or because I have so many great memories attached to it. Gathering online like that for over six months was about so much more than just the challenge and victory of reading a really, really long novel; it was about grasping hands with other women across continents when the world was shut down and life was filled with heartache and unknowns.

‘Reading together creates community and friendship. It’s a way for women to connect with other women and do something that nourishes the mind and the soul. It’s a valuable investment for those who find deep connection with others through shared reading experiences.
Rachel Dodge

Since that first buddy read, I’ve continued to bond with awonderful group of bookish friends online. I’ve participated in buddy reads, launch teams, giveaways, and group chats. Many of the women I’ve met online have become my sister-friends and prayer partners. I have even met some them in person while traveling for vacations, events, and conferences!

Best of all, as an author of classics based devotional books, I also have the unique privilege of writing books that provide a space for women to gather together to talk about their favorite books and grow in their faith. I can’t imagine a more wonderful thing!

Books have provided a gathering place for me my whole life, and I’m so thankful. I honestly can’t imagine a life without books—or my bookish friends.

About the Author: Rachel Dodge is the bestselling author of The Anne of Green Gables Devotional, The Little Women Devotional, and Praying with Jane: 31 Days Through the Prayers of Jane Austen. Rachel’s newest book is The Secret Garden Devotional! Rachel teaches college English classes, gives talks at libraries, teas, and book clubs, and writes for the popular Jane Austen’s World blog. A true kindred spirit at heart, Rachel enjoys books, bonnets, and ball gowns. You can find her online at www.RachelDodge.com.

I hope you have enjoyed this encouraging story from my friend Rachel. To make things even more exciting Rachel and I are so excited to partner for a Kindred Spirits Giveaway just in time for Galentine’s Day! Visit both of our IG communities and find how to enter there! Rachel’s IG

Gracefully,

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The Ministry of Table Fellowship

January 30, 2023January 30, 2023Leave a comment

by Rachael Adams

An Open Table Opens Up Hearts

“Thank you for welcoming me to your table. I can’t remember the last time I shared a meal like
this.”

The value of sharing meals with people was modeled by Jesus. We read about Him reclining at tables and hosting dinner parties along the shoreline. He had intimate gatherings with seven for breakfast (John 21) and with twelve at the last supper (Matthew 26). He also held larger gatherings, feeding crowds of five thousand (Mark 6) and four thousand (Mark 8) with a few fish and bread that He had multiplied.

The early church practiced coming to the table together just as Jesus did during His earthly ministry. This is one of the simplest ways the gospel spread. We read about this in the book of Acts as well as in another ancient source called the Didache. This early church document, compiled between 50-70 CE and used during the time before the four Gospels became prevalent, served as a practical manual to teach early church members how to live as followers of Jesus. Interestingly enough, the second largest section of the Didache focused on what believers did when they ate together at a table.

A man by the name of Thomas O’Laughlin who studied the Didache said this: “What set this community (the early church) apart was the sharing of food cut across the social stratifications of the ancient world and its dining practice. The poor and the rich ate together, the slave shared a table with their master, women ate with men, the outcast with the religiously pure, the Gentile sat next to the Jew, and all prayed to the Father and thanked Him for sending His Son.”

Isn’t this a beautiful picture? I imagine it’s a little taste of what heaven will be like—where we are all invited to the feast God is preparing for the wedding supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:6-9). Everyone is welcome at God’s table, just as the early church invited and embraced everyone at their tables too. But do we do the same?

Who sits around our tables? My prayer and challenge for us is to invite people beyond our biological families to gather with us because we are all family in God’s eyes. It’s exciting to think about how our gatherings could eventually even add to the number in God’s family as happened through table fellowship in the days of the early church (Acts 2:47).

‘And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.’
Acts 2:46-47

Our tables could be the places God does His best work. We don’t have to be gourmet cooks to make a meaningful impact. Store-bought dinner or restaurant takeout can be as impactful as homemade because the significance of the meal lies not in the food but in the people and conversations we have. Whether it’s simple or extravagant, a meal can go a long way toward growing bonds of love between family and friends.

How will your table become your ministry? Invite someone to break bread with you and see what God will do. Because where two or three gather, God promises to be there with them also (Matthew 18:20).

Rachel is a writer, podcast host, and true southern mama. When she is not mothering her two children or navigating living out of an RV (true story), She’s dreaming up ways of how to remind women like you that your life matters.

Gracefully,

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The Secret Garden Devotional

December 27, 2022January 8, 2023Leave a comment

A chapter-by- chapter companion to the beloved Classic

Book Review in the Art of Gathering Series

Gathering Together Through Books

“I’m going to see everything grow here. I am going to grow here my self.”
Colin, The Secret Garden, Chapter 21

We all need a place to grow. I know you believe this too. It’s inherent in us and we know that the places where we grow healthy and strong are the places where we belong just for being there. We don’t have to prove ourselves or make others want us we simply are at rest and free to grow and become. Books were the first places to provide this knowledge for me. I began to grow in confidence believing that my story also belonged here with me. I was encouraged by stories like The Secret Garden, to believe that the past didn’t define my hope for a better future.

My friend Rachel has written a brilliant devotional companion to the this treasured story. She has a gift for writing Christ centered companion devotionals for our treasured reads. You can find my review for Little Women here and how it touched my heart as a young Mama. The timing of reading these devotionals has always amazed me, they have come into my life at a time when I needed a treasured story but also hope for the future amidst uncertainty. I know the pandemic is still fresh in our minds with all the uncertainty it held but the soothing balm of reading stories that ultimately point us to Jesus was a sweet gift. I first read through Anne of Green Gables and then through Little Women with our kiddos in our homeschool and I just smile at the cherished moments of togetherness and prayer.

Over the last few weeks I have been writing and inviting writers to share about their experience with gathering together in the good times and bad times. So, it just made me giddy to read that Chapter 21 in the devotional focused on the importance of gathering together and how it creates space for us to grow and thrive. I love how Rachel describes this, ” The secret garden in full bloom provides a picture the thriving Christian community God desires for each of us- a place where we can flourish and grow. the body of Christ isn’t trimmed and perfect; it’s full of variety and gifting and imperfections. It’s a place where weakness and growth coexist, burdens are shared, and hearts are tended…And where the family of God builds one another up and invites others in.” What a breath of fresh air, we are meant to be together for our benefit, the building of the Church, and for the glory of God.

‘And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.’
Acts 2:46-47

I urge you to pick up a copy of this gorgeous devotional as we head into the thick of winter. I know this sweet story along with the devotional will provide for you a lattice of hope on which to grow in endurance as you wait for spring. The deep roots that are built in community will not only tether you to truth but they will also nourish you in the dead of winter. Be encouraged Dear heart you are meant for belonging, community, and thriving.

Gracefully,

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A Table in The Desert Place

December 23, 2022January 8, 2023Leave a comment

A Guest Writer Series

He Sets a Table for You In the Midst of Hard Times

Welcome, your place is ready. Sit down. Breath. Feel your soul exhale as you wrap your hands around a warm cup of tea and a story. The stories shared here are the perfect mix of encouragement and practical. These writers want to share a bit of their heart with you so that gathering at the table is seen in the right light. Gathering together is how we are wired. Gathering at the table is how we are formed and known. Praying for you, that as you read your soul will fill its worth, He is waiting for you at Table, come.
Daisy

“So what is your plan? What are you gonna do when the house sells?” I pause for a brief moment before replying. This thought rushes in, “This is just absolutely nuts-I must be either crazy, avoidant, or completely full of faith in God.” To be honest, there could be a mixture of all three mixed in with my ever changing emotions in my journey with the Lord. “Well, I don’t know…we’ll figure it out when we need to,” I replied to her. I’m relying on the faith and hope that He will sustain my family and me as I lean on Jesus and what He says to be true.

Have you ever been there, friend, wondering just how in the world you are going to keep it all going? Well, grab a tea or coffee or the last bit of energy you may have and let’s chat for a bit.

When my sweet friend, Daisy, asked me to provide a piece for this blog series, I immediately laughed probably a lot like Sarah laughed when God said she was going to have a baby by the following year. I started wondering, “What can I write that could possibly bring some encouragement to someone during a difficult season?” Honestly, the well felt like it had run dry. What I can offer is simply part of my story-a little snapshot into this “desert place” we are facing and just how beautiful gathering around a table has been and will be during uncertain and difficult times.

“I just received a termination letter,” my husband says over the phone. In short, he lost his job without any reason, any cause, or any explanation. This news blasted into our lives on the heels of the passing of my dear cousin and my husband’s loss of his aunt, who was like another mother to him. My parents were staying long term with us each dealing with newly diagnosed health problems. Meanwhile, my mother in law struggled with her health while trying to care for her husband in and out of the hospital. I felt and,quite honestly, still feel like I’m on a battlefield. And as if that wasn’t enough, one of our children began struggling with some serious issues and the other was simply not fitting in at school- and needing additional help with studying and focus. My prayers during all this became fragmented, cries for help and strength. There are days where the only prayers I can muster are simply calling out to God His characteristics and His promises…because honestly it is all my spirit can do. Meditating on His sovereignty and faithfulness while recalling the promise of never leaving me has been a source of strength. “Be still and know that I am God”, “in the presence of the Lord is the fullness of joy”, and “I will never leave you” have been breathed into my soul and as I repeat them back, I feel the strength for that moment. While this practice has proven to be healing and transforming, it isn’t all the Lord is using.

The table in the desert place is really what this is about. My desert place today looks like losing a close family member, losing a job, uncertainty about children, and health concerns while also wanting to remain faithful in the work the Lord has called me to. Your desert place may look different but I wager you can relate to this list. While I still struggle at times to rely on the Lord completely, I am always amazed to find He has been preparing a way for me all along. A group of us had committed to gather at the table for a meal each month to listen to each other, and care for one another’s hearts. Let me be honest…while all of this has been happening in my life, the last thing I have wanted to do is gather together, listen to, and be there for other people. My plate is full-I am a wife, mom, daughter, daughter in law, bible study leader, bible teacher, volunteer, and substitute teacher….how in the world can I do anything else right now?! Although I’m not proud to admit these feelings, speaking them outloud to Jesus primarily but also to friends who will listen without judgment is freeing. The encouragement I have received from them pushes me past the limiting and intrusive thoughts, and this has been an undeniably significant part of this journey.

As I went to the table one evening, I arrived hungry, exhausted, and frustrated. I even remember saying, “I may only stay for a little while, gals.” But as I crunched down on the most delicious candied apple, my erected walls began crumbling. I felt the Holy Spirit tell me to open up fully about the circumstances I was walking through. That night as we ate and poured out our hearts to each other, we ended up petitioning the Lord for what was heavy in each of our lives. It was sacred ground; a holy moment that just an hour before I wasn’t willing to receive. But isn’t this the beauty of gathering together around a table with your friends who love Jesus more than themselves or their agendas? Our food wasn’t elaborate that evening and the table wasn’t elaborately adorned, but the unforgettable beauty of that night was a group of women on their knees before their Creator crying to the One who heals, the One who provides, and the One who fights for us.

The table became an altar on which we reminded each other that only King Jesus can satisfy us in a way that lasts. While my physical body has experienced hunger since then, my spirit continues to draw encouragement even now from His miraculous gift that evening. As I write this, I’m planning to have them at my home in a few days. I’m smiling because even though nothing has changed in our uncomfortable and stressful situation, there is something that remains-Jesus. He is my source of strength. He is giving me the ability, energy, and excitement to plan a meal and prepare my table for our next meal. Setting the table is not just one more thing to do during the holiday season. Instead I want to remind you that gathering around the table is a gift one through which miracles happen with eternal repercussions. Remember, He sets the table first for you even in the midst of arid desert places and it is only sweet, King Jesus who provides in the midst of what feels impossible.

Gracefully,

Amber

Amber writes in Dayton, OH from her dining table in front of a large bay window, always looking for the light. As a Mother, Writer, and Bible teacher she encourages women to open the word and befriend faithfulness. When she is not chauffeuring her children you will find her enjoying good food with her husband, reading, or setting the table for an impromptu lunch!

Connect with Amber

Email: amberrod22@gmail.com

Noonday Shop

Instagram: @amberrod22

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Witness

December 18, 20225 Comments

The honor of being a witness to beauty

Five Minute Friday

Picture by Courtney Patch

Every Friday, I join an online Christian writing community, Five Minute Friday. We are given a one-word prompt and write – unscripted, unedited, pure free-write – for 5 minutes. Five Minute Friday is a great place to hone my writing practice and be encouraged by other writers as I write. I will set the timer for five minutes and then write. Here we go! I am excited to invite you in, welcome.
Daisy

Gathering Together Invites You to Witness Beauty

The way the flour gathers on the island, or perches on the four year old's lashes catches you by surprise-had it always looked like that? I have been experiencing moments like this more often, as I lead my soul to see the beauty strewn around just for my delight. Cookie baking becoming a time of diaphanous beauty, one in which I encounter His kingdom breaking in to the very mundane moments of my life.

Simple gatherings lead to simply paying attention to our lives. It is the richness of the people we have in our lives and how their presence imprints on us the joy of community. This leads us to reflect on the generations before us and how their creativity and desire to lead their family to beauty created beautiful traditions. This week on the blog by friend Courtney is sharing with us her grandmother's butter cookie recipe, but more importantly the togetherness it brings as her and her daughters carry on the tradition too!

I can not wait to try her recipe with my daughters, giving them part in a legacy of love and simplicity. Creating together is a simple way of inviting others to gather adding eternal beauty to the mundane everyday moments. Go over to the last blog post and read more about how Courtney has found this to be true with her family with invitation for your family to join in!

Gracefully,

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Santa Cookie Recipe

December 16, 2022December 17, 20222 Comments

The Art of Gathering

A Guest Writer Series

Holiday Traditions Bind our Hearts for Generations

Welcome, your place is ready. Sit down. Breath. Feel your soul exhale as you wrap your hands around a warm cup of tea and a story. The stories shared here are the perfect mix of encouragement and practical. These writers want to share a bit of their heart with you so that gathering at the table is seen in the right light. Gathering together is how we are wired. Gathering at the table is how we are formed and known. Praying for you, that as you read your soul will fill its worth, He is waiting for you at Table, come.
Daisy

I come by it honestly, my love for creating a cozy and beautiful home, a space that you want to gather with those you love. That is true of me throughout the year, but especially during the holiday season. My mom always had a way of making Christmas feel magical and special, and that had a lot to do with the family traditions that she and my dad created for my brothers and I, and it’s something that I love having the opportunity to do as mom to my three little girls. The twinkling lights throughout the house, a tree in (almost!) every room, and my ever growing collection of vintage Santa’s add to the fun, but it is the little traditions that really make it feel extra special year after year.

Central to my memories of holiday gathering’s growing up involves a lot of flour, butter, and yummy things baking in the oven. From pies, to cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning, my mom’s delicious turtle bars, and chocolate fudge, we love making our favorite sweet treats each year. But the one that most certainly stands out the most in my memory, and will hopefully continue for generations to come, are my Grandma Perkin’s Butter Cookies. I have the sweetest memory of calling my Grandma on the phone when I was home from college one year because I couldn’t find her recipe and she of course was ready and willing to share. I still have the scrap of paper that I wrote it down on and I tear up every year when I pull it out of the recipe box.

Three Generations of women gathering together in their kitchen, creating holiday traditions.

Now, the recipe is of course a necessary component, but it is the cookie cutter itself that is central to the story. I didn’t know until a couple of years ago, that the tradition started when my mom was a little girl, and my Grandma baked Santa Cookies (as we call them) for my mom’s 1st grade (December) birthday party at school. From that point on they became a yearly favorite for my mom and grandmother and now for me and my girls. Being the avid thrifter and antiquer that I am, I always have my eye out for that one special Santa cookie cutter that we have used for decades. My mom’s sister Janet, and her kids have one, as do my brothers and their kiddos, and my girls and I cherish ours. I have collected 10 or more over the years, and as we were growing our families we tried to make sure each new addition has one as well.

As soon as my girls were old enough to help, they have been helping me roll out and decorate these cookies (he must have a red hat and a white beard) and it is a tradition I hope that they will remember and share with their children someday.

Grandma Perkins’ Butter Cookie Recipe

Ingredients for the cookies:

1 cup softened butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 T vanilla

3 cups flour

1/2 t. baking powder

Vanilla Buttercream Icing:

3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

4 T butter

1 tsp Vanilla

4 T milk

Instructions:

1.Cream together the soft butter, sugar and egg

2.Stir in Vanilla

3.Add flour and Baking powder and mix.

4.*optional* You can chill the dough for 30 minutes before you roll them out to make the dough easier to work with.

5. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees

6. Roll out and cut with cookie cutters of your choice (but we of course recommend Santa!)

7. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes

8. While the cookies cool make the vanilla buttercream

9. Mix all butter cream ingredients in the mixing bowl and whip until creamy!

Once cool decorate and Enjoy!

The Tenderness of a Holiday Tradition

I’ve so enjoyed taking the time to think through this holiday tradition that is so near and dear to my heart, and thank Daisy for inviting me to share it with you! I hope that you will make your own batch of Grandma Perkins’ Butter Cookies as you share the season with those you love. Because in our house, it doesn’t *truly* feel like Christmas until we’ve had our first bite of Santa Cookie.

Gracefully,

Courtney

Courtney is a fair trade stylist and storyteller who has a deep love for thrifting, travel, photography, and motherhood. She thrifts and bakes in St. Louis but her wanderlust heart is alway thinking of her next travel adventure.

Connect with Courtney

Visit her Noonday Shop

Email: courtneypnoonday@gmail.com

Facebook: Courtney Steever Patch

Instagram: @Courtstylesthriftedandfair_stl

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December 9, 2022January 8, 2023Leave a comment

A Guest Writer Series

Cultivating a Spirit of Togetherness this Holiday Season

Welcome, your place is ready. Sit down. Breath. Feel your soul exhale as you wrap your hands around a warm cup of tea and a story. The stories shared here are the perfect mix of encouragement and practical. These writers want to share a bit of their heart with you so that gathering at the table is seen in the right light. Gathering together is how we are wired. Gathering at the table is how we are formed and known. Praying for you, that as you read your soul will fill its worth, He is waiting for you at Table, come.
Daisy

Gathering with friends and family, especially during the holidays, is a treasured gift. To see loved one’s faces and hear their familiar voices nourishes our souls just as the meal nourishes the body.

We know, however, that it’s not always possible to have everyone we love gathered around the table. While it’s never the same without the uncle who cracks the corny jokes, the grandmother who bakes a family recipe to perfection, or the sibling who helps to make the unseen feel seen. There are ways to honor their absence, as well as create lasting memories for those who are around the table. In honoring those far or no longer with us, we cultivate a spirit of togetherness that will thread gratitude throughout the generations. Grounding us to the present and helping us see that our time of gathering whether in person or in spirit remind us that we have received grace upon grace.

Ideas to Cultivate a Spirit of Togetherness

Because sometimes we need a go to list of ways to be together without a big fuss, I have made you a list to tuck away, go to when you need a reminder for how to extend an invitation, and gather those near and far.

Choose joy. Focus on those who will be around our table this holiday season. Not every situation creates happiness, but we can always choose joy. Though we miss those around our table, we can choose to celebrate the power of being present with those who are with us.

Send a card. If possible, ask as many relatives as possible to either sign your card or send one of their own to the person who is unable to attend. Be specific about why you will miss them.

Fill up plates. Does the missing someone live nearby? If their absence is due to an illness, deliver a plate of food (and don’t skimp on the pie!). Deliver it with a smile and a holiday-sized air hug to make it extra special. Food has a way of bringing people together in a way few other things do.

Plan a Facetime or Zoom session ahead of time. It will give everyone something to look forward to, especially the person who is unable to be there in person.

Give to others. Donate the money usually spent on additional groceries to a ministry that feeds the hungry during holidays in honor of those missing from your holiday table.

Create a “Why We Love You” Jar. Write down various reasons why you love the person who is missing on slips of paper. Place them in a plastic jar to ship, or mail only the slips of paper in an envelope, if you prefer. Include directions to draw one a day leading up to the holiday and read it aloud. It’s sure to be a warm reminder of your love for them.

Create a table runner. A week or two before the holiday, ask loved ones to draw and/or write messages on Kraft paper. Cut it to the size of a placemat or table runner. Drop it in the mail in time for missing loved ones to place it on their holiday table. If you’re unable to create a table runner, consider writing messages on a card that can be folded and put on display. As always, it’s the message that matters most.

Make a voice recording. Pass a phone around the table so that everyone can share with the missing loved one that they’re missed. By sending a recorded message, your loved one can listen to it on repeat.

Make a video. Like the voice recording, pass a phone to each person and record a short message. The advantage of sending a video is that the missing loved one can see both their faces and hear their voices, which is a blessing indeed.

Add an empty chair around the table. It’s a simple but powerful reminder that although a loved one’s physical presence is missing, they are not forgotten.

Share memories. When we share specific things remembered from past holidays, especially with the younger generation, we partner with God, reminding everyone present that they belong to your family, and hopefully, a godly family heritage. If the missing loved ones have passed, ask everyone to celebrate their memory by sharing their own favorite remembrance of them.

Speak truth. Write holiday-themed scripture verses on small cards, handing out one to each person around the table. In place of a meal prayer (or in addition to), take turns reading the various cards. The Word is living and active and the most powerful source of togetherness regardless of who is present around our table.

A Prayer of Togetherness

Take a deep breath and remember that it’s not up to you to make togetherness happen but you get to partner with the Maker of Unity. You get to partner with the Prince of Peace so come before him in prayer and join him in the art of gathering through his strength.

Heavenly Father, we are thankful for the spirit of togetherness we share with You through Jesus Christ. As we navigate this holiday season without loved ones present, help us to remember that You are here in our midst, offering comfort and joy despite the disappointment. Show us how to be present—emotionally, spiritually, and physically—with everyone You seat around our table for Your purposes and pleasure. Amen.

Gracefully,

Cathy

Cathy Baker writes from a tiny studio lovingly known as The Tiny House on the Hill in the Foothills of SC. As an author, Hope Writer, and Bible teacher for over twenty-five years, she encourages women to pause and embrace the seemingly small, mundane moments of their day for God’s glory. She invites you to join her in the tiny house where you’re always welcome to come on in and take a seat. There, you’ll find a free copy of Ways to Pray Throughout Your Home. You can also connect with her on Instagram or inside her free Creative Pauses Facebook Group.