So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. – 1 Corinthians 10:31
Let me lead with apologies to those of you who have forgotten that – at its heart – this blog is a personal journal. So if you’re not all that interested in the decorating details then scroll on by!
However (and if you read me often you already know this) there is no telling where this post may go. Chances are it will end up to be about Jesus!
Rebekah and I have been thinking about details such as tile and quartz and lighting and paint for literally months. We have seen “the perfect” floor tile disappear because we did not buy it immediately; we have seen the layout of the bathrooms and the kitchen change; we have seen our ideas shift sometimes by the week.
Change is always on the horizon and very much in play until the day the tile, or the appliance, or the floor, or the cabinet, or the light fixture gets installed – or the paint goes up.
Then yesterday, just before lunch, Aaron called to say the tile guy is ready and it is time to pull the trigger. So off we went to Lowes again but this time not mere speculation but the real deal.
Personally I was glad to be finally bringing this home. First off, I am pretty much happy with anything in the neutral range. Also I am well aware that having too many available choices makes it difficult to come to a decision.
But – and this is admittedly a stretch for me – I am absolutely willing to take a risk and go with a few bold selections. This is after all a one-of-a-kind experience.
Kitchen:
In the kitchen we decided to go with a much bolder color palette then my typical comfort zone. This is our third complete kitchen rebuild and the first time we are going with something other than black granite. We have selected a colorful quartz called “Himalayan Moon.”
The backsplash involves five distinct colors, and we are painting the cabinets “Northern Juniper” and “Cobalt Cannon” – hues that inhabit the outer margins of “neutral.”
Bathrooms:
Also, as both bathrooms are fairly small, we are having to lean in to design to make the spaces pop.
Thinking about it, the idea of design is not so foreign to me as I first imagined. Structure, quality and architectural integrity absolutely inform design… but once function and form are solid the more decorative elements can run the gamut. We want this house to honor its circa 1874 roots, absolutely, but we do not intend for our expression or the way we live in the space to be dictated or hobbled by outmoded standards around decor and comfort and functionality.
“And the house on the rock stood firm”
That of course turned out to be the transitional paragraph that leads me to faith. Rebekah and I live in the house that Jesus built through his grace-saturated invitation to be reconciled to God and to walk with us along the way.
Our Jesus-following faith is sound, built on a solid rock. How we live in it, the interior design, the furniture we introduce and many of the detail choices we make… all these are informed by the integrity of the structure and our relationship with the builder, but they are not subject to – for example – 1874 interpretations or the strident requirements of often-conflicting doctrines.
But then we don’t sing from The Presbyterian Hymnal (1874) either!
So enjoy following along with us on this adventure, and please continue to pray that all the details fall into place so that we can make this move official and bid our Wake Forest community a fond farewell.
In love, and because of love – DEREK
