I hope you all enjoyed celebrating the resurrection of our Savior. We went to church and after a great worship time, we went home to spend a quiet afternoon together with just our immediate family. Our extended family members will actually come over next Sunday for our Easter celebration. We have learned that the particular day isn’t as important as the fact of celebrating and making memories together – so we celebrate when we can all get together, rather than being pressured to celebrate on a certain day.
We do the same at Christmas, often having friends and family over earlier in December or even into January. We would much rather have some extended, peaceful time together than a couple of hours of harried visiting due to other obligations.
Spring has arrived in Minnesota – very early this year. The ice went out on our lake last week which is about a month earlier than usual. The grass is greening up and we are finishing up our maple syrup season early because it’s too warm for the sap to flow. We have fresh maple syrup – if anyone is in the area call and stop by for a free bottle!
As I looked at some old photo albums this week I saw one that had a photo of our dresser in it –no big deal, right? As I looked at it I realized that I’ve owned that dresser for over 40 years – and it is still in good shape – in fact I still have the entire bedroom set, and it’s all in good shape. Actually, it is more than 40 years old, because I purchased it used. (Of course, we have replaced the mattress on the bed.)
What’s my secret for making things last this long? There are several things we do that make our possessions last longer.
- First, we purchase the best quality we can afford. Afford is the key word here. We have always lived debt-free, so we shop for what we need, and then save for it until we can pay cash. Waiting like this to own something makes you more aware of the worth of the item.
When we shop we do consider buying used items. I always remember what the salesman said when we were shopping for our sewing machine. He had a used one that was very nice and had a lot of features the new one in our price range didn’t have. When we asked his opinion, he said, “It would be like buying a used Cadillac or a new Chevy.” Since he was offering a good warranty & the same sewing class with both the new and used one, we decided to purchase the “used Cadillac” and have been very happy with it for 23 years.
- Second, we follow the manufacturer’s instructions for caring for it. For instance, if we buy good leather boots we rub the oil paste into them so they are water proof and last longer.
- Third, we store things appropriately when we aren’t using them so they don’t get damaged.
I’ve known people who leave all their summer play things out in their yard all winter. When spring comes everything is damaged beyond repair, so they go purchase all new things. Doing this year after year can really get expensive – and not only is it expensive, but we don’t think it’s good stewardship.
We used our outdoor toys year after year, and as our children outgrew them we either sold them at a garage sale or passed them on to friends with younger children.
- Lastly, we maintain what we own, making repairs when necessary to make then last a good, long time.
These are just some very basic guidelines that you can apply to anything you purchase. Good stewardship is taking care of everything the Lord provides for us.
Finding Joy in the Journey,
Phyllis
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Phyllis Sather
Proclaiming God’s Faithfulness at:
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