The Tea Cup of Today

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“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”  Psalm 118:24

 In the midst of a frenzied afternoon at work today, I paused to read an email from my daughter Amy:

“I’ve been thinking about this quote a lot lately:  “This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it.”  The last two words, “in it”, are what have me thinking. The phrase makes it seem like it’s a special place – a porcelain cup, specially made, specially prepared – to rejoice, to revel, to live fully in — when you are in something like a cup of tea, surrounded.”

Any given second, any given breath, we are within the walls of a day. We can’t see tomorrow – and so we can only treat it with what we can’t see – with hope (but how great is our hope when we think about Jesus)? We see only today, and our hands, and our feet, and our loved ones, and whatever else God has given us for today. “

What Amy wanted to tell me is that today is not only a special time, but a unique and wondrous place designed by God for us to live and breathe in.

The porcelain tea cup of today.

I smile at the thought of today and of pink porcelain cups.

by D. G. V.

*** Author’s Note: this link leads to a poem I wrote for my daughter Amy.

39 thoughts on “The Tea Cup of Today”

  1. I love this, Dee. And yes, it is in the simple message that this moment (this one like no other) contains all we need to rejoice, to be glad. In this moment, the things we have to be grateful for most surely outnumber those we do not ~ and in the filling, we find proof that God will provide us with love enough to endure, faith enough to believe, and strength enough to ‘look up’. Beautiful! ~ Much love to you, Bobbie

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  3. I often moan, alone in my room when someone writes me they are “living in the moment,” but as your daughter points out here that is not the case – here is an attitude that places us both in rejoicing with God and looking forward to the next day, the next year, being with Him.
    My mother was born on a little island in Canada – not many people everyone knew everyone. When a girl was to marry – or strike out on her own, the community of women gathered and brought a tea cup – one of their own or a brand new one. This was for her moments alone or with special friends – each had their own beautiful cup to admire and discuss – who it was from, why it was given. My family carries out that tradition to this day – all of us “girls,” have our own special tea cup collection and it is our duty to add to and give away – you’ve given me fond memories for this day and the women I know and knew – thank you both

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    • What a beautiful and meaningful family tradition of tea cup treasures! I can just imagine all the intricate and delicate tea cups in your collection! Thank you so much for sharing this lovely story, Sandra! The meaning behind a tea cup for a woman’s moments alone or with special friends is so beautiful, and what you just shared is a wonderful enhancement to this post! All my best, Dee

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  4. This so reminded me of my grandmother. She collected tea cups and saucers. A special treat for each of her grandchildren was coffee (mostly milk for us) in a cup of our choosing to share with her in her big bed in the morning. A ritual of love and blessing. K

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  6. That same verse has repeatedly come to my mind over the last few days, too. In the midst of striving to go forward, to get forward, always looking toward tomorrow, we have to remember to always take thought of our present great salvation and Savior. It’s easy to overlook blessings that we’re already sitting in (whether they be people, family and friends; or ‘things’ like a roof, clothing, food and good health) when circumstances aren’t going as smoothly as we’d like. Remembering the Lord, His love and salvation to us, will always bring the strength to persevere and help brighten our outlook. And with a brightened outlook comes a smile, making us easier and more pleasant to be around, both for God and for other people 🙂

    Thanks, Dee, to you and Amy for this excellent reminder…God bless you both

    Lester

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    • Amen, Lester. Our present salvation gives us a brightened outlook, and a hope for the future! Your words immediately bring to my mind II Corinthians 6:2 – “behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation”. Our God dwells in the eternal “Now” and how wonderful to know that we dwell in this real and present salvation through Jesus Christ. Thank you, Lester, for mentioning our present great salvation. It makes the thought of “today” even more meaningful! Thanks from Amy and me. 🙂

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  10. special words indeed! Since we are not promised tomorrow…..that makes today a special gift that we are given from the moment we wake!

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  11. How true that today – or this very moment – is all we can be sure of.
    This reminds me again of my favourite quote, found in the diary of Jim Elliot, missionary who was killed by the Auca Indians.
    “So live, that when you come to die, you have nothing left to do, but die”

    We are one day closer.

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  12. It’s good for us to number our days by being conscious of what we spend that 24 hours doing and being. Yesterday it came to me that my day was a “soggy peach fuzz” day… I had just brought a batch of ripe peaches from the Farmer’s Market and was in the process of washing them and cutting them up for later use. It’s a tactile sensation that I will ever connect to the taste of peaches now. I was glad for the humor of that day… and today for your post.

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  14. That is such a beautiful verse. Way back when I did my student teaching, the classroom teacher greeted me with those words. It always lifted my spirits and made me begin the day with a smile knowing that God had a plan for my day. Your pink porcelain cup was gorgeous and would be the perfect cup to serve a friend a spot of tea. Thanks for your lovey post!

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    • I love this verse, too, and it was a pleasure to share my daughter’s reflections on this psalm. Thank you for sharing your experience while you did your student teaching, and for your beautiful thoughts on this verse. Blessings to you!

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  16. A beautiful picture of the precious value of each day God gives us. I have a collection of unique teacups handed down to me from my grandmother. Now when I see them in my china cabinet, I will think of your daughter’s illustration. Thanks for sharing it with us!

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    • x My deepest apologies for my late response! I have been away from blogging for so long, and I was not made aware of your response until now. Thank you so much for your heartwarming comment! I can just picture the lovely teacups handed down to you from your grandmother! I am happy to know that my daughter’s illustration brought special meaning to the heirloom of your grandmother’s teacups! How delicate and priceless those teacups must be. Blessings, Dee

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  17. This is so beautiful, Dee!! And just what I needed to hear. Like mother, like daughter. How could she not be with a mother like you. And thanks so much for all the likes on my site. I haven’t gotten any postings from you for quite some time and i am following you. Going to look into it. Sometimes WP does crazy things. xx ellen

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    • Dear Ellen, Thank you so much for visiting my site! I have been away from blogging for so long, that’s the reasons there have not been any new postings. Work and other demands have taken a huge chunk of my time. I really miss my blogging days and hope to be back, if only for some few posts here and there. I was entranced by your photography and poetry yesterday when I had a bit of time to visit some choice blogging friends. No, WP has not been crazy, only that my schedule the past year has been quite crazy. Blessings, Dee

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      • Thank you, Dee. Actually I was not posting for awhile. A sick husband and some issues for me. Life gets in the way sometimes. I am just grateful for your visit and hope you will be finding time to post again if you wish to. Blessings to you as well, xx Ellen

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