Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Finding God at the Kitchen Sink: Search for Glory in the Everyday Grime
    Finding God at the Kitchen Sink: Search for Glory in the Everyday Grime
    Finding God at the Kitchen Sink: Search for Glory in the Everyday Grime
    Ebook211 pages1 hour

    Finding God at the Kitchen Sink: Search for Glory in the Everyday Grime

    By Maggie Paulus

    4/5

    ()

    Switch to audiobook
    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Did you know you can find glory everywhere?

    Finding God at the Kitchen Sink is a collection of reflections for those seeking solace in this fallen, confusing, and disorderly world.

    Did you know you can find glory everywhere—in God’s creation, in His Word, in relationships, and in the details of everyday life? Maggie’s gut-honest perspective will help you see that God shows up even where we least expect Him, like in the pain and ache of life.

    With stories that teach us to pay attention to His Presence, to the God who is always here and is always for us, Finding God at the Kitchen Sink changes the way we see everything. Those with bruised up hearts who are plodding along, simply existing, will come away with a heaping amount of hope that there is indeed purpose in the mundane and glory in the grime.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMoody Publishers
    Release dateJul 28, 2014
    ISBN9780802490711

    Related to Finding God at the Kitchen Sink

    Related ebooks

    Christianity For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Wednesday, February 2

      Dec 15, 2021

      CANADIAN BRIAN DOERKSEN WROTE THE familiar worship song, “Come, Now Is the Time to Worship.” In a lunchtime interview at his home, he told me that he composed it during a time of deep anguish in his soul. One day when he felt especially discouraged,

      1 min read

    • Article

      Thursday, May 13

      Apr 15, 2021

      ONE MORNING MY DAUGHTER, HOLLY, helped my eight-year-old grandson straighten up his room. Later that day, she glanced in Roman’s room and found it a wreck. Several books had been pulled off the shelf; some were turned upside down to mark the spot whe

      1 min read

    • Article

      Monday, January 2

      Dec 16, 2022

      “WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU could do better?” a friend asked me recently. Without missing a beat, I quickly replied, “Sing.” I’ve long admired those who have voices that can croon any type of music—Christian, opera, R&B, pop, jazz, or country. I love to si

      1 min read

    • Article

      Thursday, March 3

      Feb 16, 2022

      MY BOAT’S GALLEY CUPBOARDS ARE stained a deep reddish-brown. The glossy doors look beautiful set against the surrounding off-white walls. Their interiors, however, are a different matter. Humidity levels run high from November through April because w

      1 min read

    • Article

      Monday, April 25

      Feb 16, 2022

      MY MOM, GLORIA, WAS A great woman who valued peace in her home and in her relationships. She was known for putting up her hand if a discussion got too heated and saying, “Peace!” Then she’d simply walk away, without holding a grudge. As a result of h

      1 min read

    • Article

      Rooted In God’s Love

      Feb 10, 2023

      Rooted In God’s Love
      5 min read

    • Article

      Tuesday, August 1

      Jun 16, 2023

      I EAT MY BREAKFAST STRAIGHT from the tree outside the back door, savoring sweet, succulent fruit until I've had my fill. Thinking I'd planted an ornamental shade tree, I was surprised when it turned out to be a fruiting mulberry tree. Had I known, I

      1 min read

    • Article

      Wednesday, November 3

      Oct 15, 2021

      Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 (ESV) FOR THE PAST YEAR I’VE had a monthly phone call with a spiritual director. I reached out to her because I was feeling unclear about God’s purpose for me

      1 min read

    • Article

      Max Lucado

      Jan 26, 2023

      Max Lucado
      2 min read

    • Article

      Ask Val

      Sep 23, 2022

      Ask Val
      2 min read

    • Article

      The Beautiful, Joy-filled Discovery Of Spiritual Gifts

      Jun 24, 2019

      It is a known fact that believers flourish in their service to Christ when they are serving in the area of their giftedness and in conjunction with their God-given uniqueness. Spiritual gifts are divine endowments and abilities given to us by God to

      2 min read

    • Article

      A Testimony of God’s Faithfulness

      Aug 27, 2021

      My testimony is shrouded in abandonment, pain, and rejection. This is a shortened version of the events that have taken place in my life… Right from the very beginning, my father walked out of the hospital on the night that I was born. He told my mom

      3 min read

    • Article

      Introduction

      Jan 16, 2021

      Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. HEBREWS 12:2 NIV I’VE ALWAYS THOUGHT of Lent as a new beginning—

      1 min read

    • Article

      Sunday, August 18

      Jun 18, 2019

      WHAT DOES IT REALLY MEAN to pray without ceasing? Does it mean we chant at the wailing wall in Jerusalem? Or is it more like the meditative murmurs of a cloistered nun? I used to think that was the picture of devoted prayer. Today, it looks like cons

      1 min read

    • Article

      This Is Me

      Mar 26, 2019

      This Is Me
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Power of Prayer

      Sep 16, 2019

      The Power of Prayer
      2 min read

    • Article

      Sunday, July 3

      Jun 16, 2022

      The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life. Job 33:4 (ESV) ON A VACATION WITH MY family in Belize, I almost ran out of air while scuba diving. About ten minutes into a dive, I checked my air supply—it was in the red

      1 min read

    • Article

      Thursday, July 27

      Jun 16, 2023

      I LAUGHED OUT LOUD FROM inside the public bathroom stall. Here's why: A sign affixed to the stall door read: “Don't flush paper towels, sanitary products, or your dreams down the toilet.” I felt validated and uplifted by finding important advice in a

      1 min read

    • Article

      Consecrate Yourself To The Lord

      Dec 30, 2022

      Happy new year! I wish you everything of the best for this year ahead. Each day is a blessing from the Lord, let us use 2023 wisely. Have you ever ‘consecrated’ yourself to the Lord? I am not talking about when you got saved and invited Jesus into yo

      2 min read

    • Article

      Pastor Jo Swart

      Aug 26, 2022

      Pastor Jo Swart
      7 min read

    • Article

      Letters To The EDITOR

      Jul 22, 2022

      Dear readers, we love to hear your thoughts on the stories that we publish, what is going on around the world, and what the Lord has placed on your heart! Email your letter through to editor@joymag.co.za for a chance to be featured – please try to ke

      9 min read

    • Article

      Letters To The EDITOR

      Sep 23, 2022

      D ear readers, we love to hear your thoughts on the stories that we publish, what is going on around the world, and what the Lord has placed on your heart! Email your letter through to editor@joymag.co.za for a chance to be featured – please try to k

      7 min read

    • Article

      The Incurable Optimist

      Sep 11, 2019

      The Incurable Optimist
      8 min read

    • Article

      Letters To The Editor

      Jun 15, 2020

      A lot of people are asking why the world is the way it is. What’s going on? What on earth is God doing? Most of these people have never considered God before, but are questioning now that there is this terrible international crisis that is killing th

      7 min read

    • Article

      Letters To The EDITOR

      Mar 18, 2022

      Dear readers, we love to hear your thoughts on the stories that we publish, what is going on around the world, and what the Lord has placed on your heart! Email your letter through to editor@joymag.co.za for a chance to be featured – please try to ke

      7 min read

    • Article

      Letters To The EDITOR

      Mar 10, 2023

      D ear readers, we love to hear your thoughts on the stories that we publish, what is going on around the world, and what the Lord has placed on your heart! Email your letter through to editor@joymag.co.za for a chance to be featured – please try to k

      8 min read

    • Article

      Letters To The EDITOR

      Jul 21, 2023

      D ear readers, we love to hear your thoughts on the stories that we publish, what is going on around the world, and what the Lord has placed on your heart! Email your letter through to editor@joymag.co.za for a chance to be featured – please try to k

      6 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Finding God at the Kitchen Sink

    4/5

    3 ratings1 review

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      Since school started I've felt kind of like a passenger on the run away bus from the movie Speed - if I go slower than 55 miles per hour everything will explode! This isn't a complaint exactly, we're having a lot of fun, but it's a challenge to remember to breathe and enjoy. Finding God At The Kitchen sink by Maggie Paulus is all about looking for peace and glory in the midst of everyday chaos. It's a book that I've turned to again and again this Fall when I need a reminder to look for solace in the midst of car pool, or a bit of grace while volunteering at scouts camp.Maggie Paulus is honest about her struggles with her young family, and in return helped me realize that I'm not alone. Though I've read this book once, I'm going to keep in in the drawer next to my bed for those days when I just can't face the laundry any more and retreat to bed early.{Note: I was given a copy of this book in return for a honest review. I was not compensated in any other way.}

    Book preview

    Finding God at the Kitchen Sink - Maggie Paulus

    PRAISE FOR FINDING GOD AT THE KITCHEN SINK

    Maggie Paulus belongs to the society A. W. Tozer called the fellowship of the burning heart. She’s on a hunt—a hunt for beauty and rest, for the slaking of those longings and desires that linger deep down in every human soul. And in this gem of a book, she invites us to join the hunt, recounting along the way the brokenness of her past, the ordinariness of her present, and the glorious hope she has discovered in Jesus. C. S. Lewis wrote about finding patches of Godlight in the woods of our experience. Well, this beautiful book is full of Godlight. I hope you’ll read it. 

    —BRIAN G. HEDGES, pastor and author

    Captivating! Every page breathes fresh gospel hope. Maggie masterfully weaves life-story with His story and then beckons us to imagine the extraordinary, almost unimaginable significance and mission that exists in the mundaneness of our daily realities. I laughed. I cried. And I was drawn to know Him more. 

    —CARRIE GAUL, author, Joy in the Midst: A Study in Philippians

    Maggie has a child’s eyes, an artist’s soul, and a lover’s heart. Some books make wise. This book reveals the God who makes good. Grab your coffee, cookies, and Kleenex, and (as Maggie puts it) get ready for your Maker to scribble round the edges of your heart.

    —DEL FEHSENFELD III, senior editor of Revive Magazine, Life Action Ministries

    Maggie has been a longtime friend of our family, and I’ve always admired the way she notices beauty and the grace of God in both nature and the people around her. She takes the time, in her ordinary routine, to thank and praise God, and marvel at the work of His hand. That’s a gift. In Finding God at the Kitchen Sink, Maggie shares that gift with us!

    —CARRIE WARD, author, Together: Growing Appetites for God

    With homespun style that won’t let you go, Maggie lives and breathes God in every detail. She helps us appreciate that there is no humdrum when it comes to discovering God in the daily grind. Real struggles can become real strides forward with Maggie as a reliable guide.

    —BYRON PAULUS, president, Life Action Ministries, Buchanan, MI

    If we ever needed the reminder that God will meet us where we are in our messy, broken lives, this is it. Maggie beautifully shows us how to see God in the midst of our everyday lives—both in the exceptional and the mundane. A must-read for those desperate to recognize God’s fingerprints on their life.

    —NATALIE LEDERHOUSE, assistant editor, Today’s Christian Woman

    FOR BRENT.

    Thank you for affirming me and praying for me—when we wake up in the morning or on your lunch break and even in the middle of the dark night. Thank you for speaking words into my life that have helped and have healed. Thank you for choosing me. Over and over again. And thank you for being goofy and making me laugh more than anyone else in this big wide world. I dig all your groovy, uncoordinated dance moves.

    I love you.

    AND FOR MY SWEET LOVES, GIDEON, HOPE, AND SAMUEL.

    You’ve taught me so much about the kingdom, through your curious questions at the breakfast table and when I’m tucking you in your beds at night. I’ve loved seeing the world through your eyes, all full of wonder. You encourage me deep with your hope-filled belief in things you can’t yet see. You began in God’s heart—may He always be your true Home.

    I’m so glad I get to be your momma.

    © 2014 by

    MAGGIE PAULUS

    All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

    Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright © 2000, 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

    Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

    Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

    Scripture quotations marked THE MESSAGE are from The Message, copyright © by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

    Scripture emphasis was added by the author.

    Edited by Bailey Utecht

    Cover & Interior design: Erik M. Peterson

    Cover photo of windowsill copyright © 2014 by Maggie Paulus. All rights reserved.

    Photographs © 2014 by Maggie Paulus. All rights reserved.

    Author photo: Katie Bollinger

    Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

    Paulus, Maggie.

        Finding God at the kitchen sink : search for glory in everyday grime / Maggie Paulus.

          pages cm

        ISBN 978-0-8024-1180-8

        1. Spirituality—Christianity—Meditations. 2. God (Christianity)—Omnipresence—Meditations.

      3. Christian women—Religious life—Meditations. I. Title.

      BV4501.3.P39 2014

      248.4—dc23

    2014008163

    We hope you enjoy this book from Moody Publishers. Our goal is to provide high-quality, thought-provoking books and products that connect truth to your real needs and challenges. For more information on other books and products written and produced from a biblical perspective, go to www.moodypublishers.com or write to:

    Moody Publishers

    820 N. LaSalle Boulevard

    Chicago, IL 60610

    1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

    Printed in the United States of America

    A special thank you to Erik M. Peterson for taking my own pictures, these pieces of my life, and remarkably crafting the cover and interior design. I’m so glad God made artists. You’re a good, good one.

    CONTENTS

    A Word From Maggie

    Preface

    A Quiet Coffee Morning

    What God Is Like

    Hungry Still

    When You’re Not Exactly A Superhero

    The Shout-Out

    How Being A Momma Has Changed Me

    When It’s Hard To Rest

    Light And Why It Moves Me

    When You Wonder Where God Is

    This Life—A Love Song

    When You Don’t Measure Up

    The Ways We Love

    Looking For Help

    Why God Does Want Your Messy Heart

    Hunger For Beauty

    What Every Girl Needs To Hear

    Extravagant Love

    When You’ve Forgotten You’re On The Same Team

    When It’s Hard To Trust

    What A Family Is For

    Because Sometimes Life Hurts

    How To Really Enjoy Your Life

    The Beauty Hunt

    How Winter Has Taught Me About The Kingdom

    When You’re Tired And Need Some Rest

    Perhaps All God Really Wants From Us

    Brave

    A Prayer To The God Of My Life

    When Your Life Is Mostly Full Of Ordinary Things

    Solid Ground

    When You’re Afraid Of Being Abandoned

    The Most Important Thing

    When Your Life Is Really Wrecky

    Thoughts On The Kingdom

    Learning To Live Here Unafraid

    The Sound Of Our Breathing

    When Daddies And Their Boys Get Mad At Each Other

    On Hating Yourself And Why You Can Be Vulnerable To Jesus

    On Finding God In Our Broken World

    A Prayer Of Blessing—To The Reader

    About the Author

    Acknowledgments

    Excerpt from Made For More

    Excerpt from Packing Light

    Friend,

    Thank you for choosing to read this Moody Publishers title. It is our hope and prayer that this book will help you to know Jesus Christ more personally and love Him more deeply.

    The proceeds from your purchase help pay the tuition of students attending Moody Bible Institute. These students come from around the globe and graduate better equipped to impact our world for Christ. Other Moody Ministries that may be of interest to you include Moody Radio and Moody Distance Learning. To learn more visit http://www.moodyradio.org/ and http://www.moody.edu/distance-learning/

    To enhance your reading experience we’ve made it easy to share inspiring passages and thought-provoking quotes with your friends via Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, and other book-sharing sites. To do so, simply highlight and forward. And don’t forget to put this book on your Reading Shelf on your book community site.

    Thanks again, and may God bless you.

    The Moody Publishers Team

    A WORD FROM MAGGIE

    DEAR ONE,

    I don’t know where today finds you. Perhaps you’re sitting by your window, there on one of the middle floors of the high-rise that looks out above all the city lights. And you’ve got your coffee and you’ve lit your candle and you’re leaning on your pillow as the rain pelts gently on the glass, little rivulets streaming down all slow and quiet and steady.

    Or perhaps you’re there in the coffee shop, sitting next to strangers. You’ve got your book and you’re settling in there in your seat, looking for some solace.

    Or maybe you’re a momma and you’ve finally got your peace because the kids just went to sleep, and there are still dishes and a heaping pile of laundry, but you’re done for the night. You just curled up on the couch and you’re way too tired to read, but you’d like to try anyway.

    One thing I do know about you … this I know about all of us here—trying to find our way, scratching out a living on this pale-blue dot that spins, tilted and twirling through

    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1