The Blessings of a Thrift Store Queen
The dictionary defines blessing as follows: “1. The act of prayer of one who blesses; 2. A grace said before or after eating; 3. The gift of Divine favor; 4. Good wishes or approval; 5. Anything that gives happiness or prevents misfortune; special benefit or favor…” I think we sometimes believe blessings have to be grandiose.
A. I. Bryant asks; “Do we take the blessings that the common days bring to us?” The truth is that blessings can come in all sizes and shapes. Today I had a simple blessing occur in my daily living; a gift from The Lord. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights.”(James 1:17)
I was running errands, and I get this thought to stop by the thrift store. This is not unusual for me, because I am a thrift store queen. 🙂 I lost my caregiving job recently, because the man I was helping was put in a nursing home. So this gal is on a tight budget. And that is okay for a thrift store queen. I also have an amazing God Who loves to take the seemingly little things in my life to bring me much joy.
I recently put together a wreath for my front porch using some really nice silk flowers handed down to me by a friend. The colors in the flowers were light green and an unusual coral. I have a couple of pillows on the bench, but I wanted just a small pillow with that coral color to tie in with the wreath and make the bench pop!
I also have been redoing my son’s room since he got married and turning it into a guest room. I bought a lamp at the thrift store (of course), but it needed a lamp shade that was white. It needed to be the kind that clips on to the bulb, since the other kind would not work.
The Lord is always taking the little things, and they become huge to encourage my heart. I believe The Lord loves to make our hearts sing! I walked into the thrift store, and they had a bin full of throw pillows. The sign said; “Four pillows for $.99.” My heart began to sing. Yes, there in the bin were two small pillows the exact coral color I needed to match my wreath. I am sure the people in the thrift store thought I was crazy — and they would be right, because I got so excited.
Then I wondered around the store, and there sitting on a box was a brand new lamp shade – white, and it was $.99. Was this an accident or some random thing? Absolutely not! My blessing from The Lord that day was waiting for me to pop in and snatch it up!
It amazes me how The Lord is so interested and involved in our daily lives. It blows me away every time it happens. I will never stop being awed at God’s goodness to me. Yep – $2.10 fits my budget, and as I am driving home I can’t keep from smiling and praising The Lord. I guess you could say my heart was singing!
Pam Cavanaugh