Guest Post: Sandy Coughlin ~ Reluctant Entertainer

I'm so thrilled to have Sandy guest posting today. We connected years ago when I first started blogging and I've watched God do amazing things with her ministry.
Her heart and passion is to help others find the lost art of hospitality and entertaining.

Of course this resonates with me as I love connecting and encouraging women also!
I wish Sandy didn't live on the other side of the country because I sure would love to have her cook an amazing meal for me have coffee with her and talk for hours!

Check out her website and grab her book "The Reluctant Entertainer ~every woman's guide to simple and gracious hospitality"

Family Unity, Marriage and Blogging
by Sandy Coughlin

Sue asked me to guest post today, and she knows me well because we've been following each others blogs for years now. I'd say we both believe in good, healthy, strong marriages and family unity.

Even if you say you know a perfect family – well guess what? You probably don’t know them very well.

Our family is not always in unity, but when it is — when my marriage is going great, I am meeting my children’s needs, we are spending time together, our family time around the dinner table is rich, our kids are on track and content, we are growing and living for God — then I am using my gifts wisely. That where blogging comes in ...

God has blessed me with a wonderful man. And the “center” of our growth as a couple comes from Him. But I recently told a friend that I gage where I am with my blog and priorities as a wife and a mother by using a barometer.

My barometer is this: How is this working within my marriage? And this is a question that we can ask ourselves about whatever we are passionate about.

If my marriage isn’t strong, then everything else seems to fall out of line.

• Is my husband in my corner? Is he in support of my passions?
• Am I making creative time for my marriage?
• Am I wowing! my husband and planning date nights?
• Does he know he’s the most important person to me (and my kids)?
• Is there tension or resentment between us?
• What is the tone when we are talking to each other?
• Am I always running off for girlfriend time?
• Am I listening to him?

If things are not good between us, these questions challenge me to get back on track. That is why I’ll sometimes say to a friend, how is this working for you and ? (hubs name here).

I’m tying this post to Reluctant Entertainer and blogging because I’ve learned that with entertaining, it can be a miserable event if I don’t have peace within my marriage and my family before it all begins.

It seems so empty if I barge ahead with plans if there is stress and strain in the home. It’s like walking into church and putting your “happy face on” when you just had a fight in the car with your husband!

Unity is important to me, as the hostess, to be real and open with my guests when they walk through the front doors. Real entertaining for real people.

How's the unity in your home, if you are married, and even (ouch! this could be a tough one) with the things that you are passionate about?

I’d love for you to share your thoughts!

Sandy Coughlin - Reluctant Entertainer
Twitter: SandyCoughlinRE
FB: Reluctant Entertainer

View her website: Reluctant Entertainer

Guest Post ~ Sandy Coughlin of Reluctant Entertainers

I have been loving Sandy's blog for a couple years now, she has taught me so much about hospitality, you must check it out if you haven't already. You are going to love her!

Here is a quote from one of the newspaper's she was featured in:

"Hospitality is not about having the best or newest
or most beautiful," says
Reluctant Entertainer Sandy Coughlin.
"It's about sharing your heart and
home with others."

Leave her some Praise and Coffee love with a comment here and then hop on over and check out her website, click on logo:

Her husband has a ministry for men too, check it out here: Paul Coughlin

When Perfect and New Wears Off …

Usually when I’m asked to be a guest blogger, I like to talk about a party or food. But when Sue asked me, I just knew I could take my most recent experience and find spiritual value to it. Let me start here …

It was over 5 years ago that we enjoyed a brand new kitchen at our old home that we lived in for 10 years.

I remember the freshness of moving in, unpacking from the garage, having brand-new - and feeling on top of the world.

Then life became ... reality. The kitchen, that once was sparkling new, didn't seem that new any more. The glitter of it all started to fade as I still had to do dishes, my stacks of "stuff" piled up on the counters, the kids made huge messes, the cupboards needed wiping down, my busy life left it looking not so pretty anymore.

Those of you who have followed my blog know that we're on the cusp of enjoying another new kitchen in our current home. It's been a long process to get it done, doing much of the work ourselves, but I'm getting that taste of "newness" and "freshness" and I'm thinking my life will be happier when ... my new kitchen is done. Not!

I want to remember the lesson I learned with the old. My happiness doesn't lie in perfect or new. Because perfect and new wears off, it becomes old, rather quickly, and as life settles in again - I know I must keep my priorities straight.

So as the newness fades, I need to stop quickly and remind myself that it's what goes on in our kitchen that really matters. It's about the love that is transpired, the bonding with friends and family that is inspired, the nourishment that will be provided and shared together. It's sitting back and relaxing; what I call sharing the common life.

God blesses us all with exactly what we have each day. It's perfect for the day, whether in old or new, and He meets our needs, down to the finest details.

I want to daily create a place of love, in the heart of my home, called "the kitchen", where food is served, and real sharing takes place.

Luke 12:29-31

"What I'm trying to do here is get you to relax, not be so preoccupied with getting so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep yourself in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. You'll find all your everyday human concerns met."
The Message Bible

Sandy Coughlin • 4 Reluctant Entertainers
• real entertaining • for • real people •
www.reluctantentertainer.com
reluctantentertainer@yahoo.com