I remember a time when I had hours in my day to sit down and write; short stories, poems, journals, songs, sermons, teachings. You name it, nothing fulfilled me more than the creative outlet of either typed or hand written words. I love the authenticity of looking back years down the road, running my fingers over the slight indentations of a page and almost being transported back in time to the very moment I penned them. At the same time, I love the swiftness in which my thoughts can travel from my brain, to my fingers, the keyboard and onto a screen in front of me. I love the "click, click, click" that I feel and hear with every letter typed. While I still journal occasionally at night before I go to sleep or in the morning before I start my day- I find my eyelids so heavy from exhaustion that creativity has been replaced by a swift jotting down of a few thoughts, days events or things the Lord has spoken to me.
Recently a thought occurred to me, what if I simply made time to write. I know there are many people out there that are following us on Facebook, You Tube and Isaiah 58 Ministries' blog that would love a more down to earth, intimate look into what makes us tick. So what if I made the time to give them that? Yeah, a few people might enjoy it (and I hope you do!) but more than that, I am bursting at the seems to share all of the exciting things that God is doing in my family and in me. I may shun technology, but I am very excited about this opportunity to share my life with you, dear readers; be you friend, family or stranger...
Welcome to the life of The Carpenter's Daughters.
Our friends/neighbors down the street had a tree come down this year; not just any tree, a black walnut. While they have a large back yard where this massive mess can hide, they still want it removed and we promised to help take care of it months ago... then summer hit and our schedule skyrocketed, placing the tree removal on the back burner. Matt confided in me some time ago that the real reason he wasn't as motivated to take care of it was because he just couldn't abide the idea of such beautiful, valuable wood meeting it's end in our wood burning stove. Since then he's been trying to figure out a way to create his own saw mill. You see, Matt grew up listening to This Old House and New Yankee Workshop reruns on his walk-man every night before sleep- this is not a joke. The kid had a passion for wood; he still does in fact. He took wood shop in high school and built some pretty amazing things, but his family discouraged this creative outlet in Matt so he shoved it to the side. When most of us were excited about getting toy catalogs in the mail, Matt hungrily flipped through ones selling saw mills. Of course he never bought one, but it's been a desire since he was a child- fast forward twenty+ years and we're going to try to make that dream a reality.
A lot of people see the projects that we take on- a 3,000 mile bike trip, massive garden, home remodeling, starting up a business and they ask us, "so what is your next big thing?" I always reply, "as the Lord leads" but today I can say we have a few things rolling around as solid desires we'd like to see to fruition soon- starting with what we can do now. We want to start milling our own wood, not only to save money on projects, but so that Matt can fulfill the calling that God has laid on his heart to be a carpenter. What an odd path to veer on... and yet it fits. I don't know if it will work out and be successful but I do know it's a beautiful thing.
My mom came to me the other day with an exciting revelation about how all of your problems go away when you think about Jesus. Not just for a moment or a few hours, but all day, everyday. And why not? He's right there with you, speaking to you, leading you... It's hard to be self centered and consumed by the world's burdens when you are thinking about Jesus. Meditating on him during your everyday activities, not just when you are sad, upset, or praying before a meal. So I did- and what vision came to me but Jesus the carpenter. Not Jesus on the cross- that image is sealed upon my heart, but rather Jesus, the everyday man. What he was doing with his time, while he was being prepared for the greatest ministry of all time. So I was hungry for research. I know my Bible, so I know there isn't much in there during this time in his life other than the fact that he was a carpenter. Matthew 13:55 tells us "Isn't this the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother's name Mary, and aren't his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?" and Mark 6:3 says almost the same thing, note though how instead of being called the son of a carpenter, it says rather "Isn't this the carpenter? ..." Some people say that at this point Joseph, his earthly father, had probably passed away and that Jesus was essentially the man of the house, thus taking the title for himself. I am no scholar and will not presume to decide that debate, but either way, he makes a striking study. This man, who knew he was the Son of God, being humble enough to take such a lowly position. There is also some debate as to what kind of carpentry work Jesus was doing. The original Greek word for carpenter was "tekton" which means craftsman, builder, carpenter, mason. Thus, he could have been a builder of any kind. However, the most common held belief is that he was a local carpenter that would have made tools like plows, furniture, homes etc... He also could have been a combination of mason and carpenter. I find both beautiful. The image that conjures in my mind of our Lord and Savior spending hours working with his hands, with only his thoughts and communication with His Heavenly Father to keep Him company takes my breath away. He truly is the Son of the real Carpenter, the real Craftsman, the One who created us all. And just as he took on this earthly body, to become like us, God sent him to become the son of another craftsman, that he might feel what it is like for an earthly man to create something. This is an imitation of his Father in Heaven who created and crafted all that we see and are.
I am not a parent, but I can see the tenderness of a son wanting to do the same things that his father does. That is why God created us the way He did, so that we might imitate Him- that we might fill the earth and subdue it. Genesis 1:28 "God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number;
fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the
birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the
ground." Take the earth in our hands and create! As husband and wife come together and create! That is how we imitate our Father in Heaven. For some reason I always felt that when I grew up I wanted to marry a carpenter; how strange, who specifies what they want a future spouse to do? I now know why, whether I end up with one or not isn't the point, the point is that without knowing it, I was being a classic daughter, wanting to marry someone just like her dad. Not my earthly father- but my Heavenly Father, how special.
Herein lies the title of this new blogging experience from me to you. I hope you will continue to join me on my journey- my family's journey. I promise it will be fun and exciting! There is never a dull moment around here- just yesterday Matt tore down a retaining wall that had been half crumbled for 50+ years so that we can rebuild it. Today, he and I drove to the Fairfield Menards and bought two skids of retaining wall block- only, when the fork lift placed the first skid of 216 blocks on Matt's flatbed Dodge Ram, the shocks sank about six inches. The fellas there suggested we come back, to pickup the second skid... saying in a slight country accent "I've got me an F250, of course it ain't a Dodge, but it barely hauls a skid of concrete..." The day before, I was digging up the flower bed behind our house to move all the plants so that we might create a place to dry the wood that we mill, I thought to myself, I need to start a blog about all this stuff, it's so exciting! I really want to give you a glimpse into what it's like on our side of the fence, day to day, real feel kind of a deal. So kick back, grab some tea and join us... There is much, much more to come!
Until next time, think about Jesus, he is that beautiful light that expels all darkness.
Love for you all,
~ Michelle
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