From the Home Place

October 23, 2025

Sitting here listening to our forced-air furnace cycle causes me to miss the old wood stove even more. The ranch house we lived in had ground corncobs in the walls for insulation, and very little, if any insulation in the roof. When the wind was howling and the snow was flying, the inside of the ‘ol house was just about as cold as it was outside.

We three boys slept upstairs, all three in a full-sized bed. Momma would spend every fall making quilts out of our old jeans and most anything else she could sew together to make something warm. I think that us boys must of had a half dozen quilts on our bed, plus an old tarp on the very top. The tarp was to keep the snow, that would blow in around the window, from piling up on our bed and getting the quilts wet. Also, the tarp made it easy to gather the snow up and throw it back out the window.

Yep, the old house I grew up in wasn’t much for warm, that is until Dad and us boys would light the wood stoves. While someone was getting the heating stove to crackling, one of us would then go to the kitchen and light Momma’s wood cook stove. The main purpose for lighting the cook stove wasn’t just for a little extra heat, but more importantly to get “the coffee on.” Of course, all of this had to be done as quietly as possible so that we didn’t wake Momma and my two younger sisters.

Back to the coffee pot – it would be made ready the night before. Seeing how the ‘ol house was so cold in the winter, the water in the coffee pot was usually frozen a tad bit, but it would melt while the cook stove was warming up and getting ready to make the day’s “first cup!”

I can still smell that old percolator making coffee. These new coffee machines are faster, but there still isn’t anything like a cup of coffee that has been perking on a wood cook stove! I have plenty of fond memories of Dad, my two brothers and myself setting around the kitchen table quietly planning the day before us, sipping a cup of fresh brewed coffee, that was by the way, strong enough to keep a feller running for several hours.

Application: Our old house was lacking insulation – the Bible is our insulation as Christians. Just get a cup of coffee and spend a few minutes reading your Bible. That time of reading will help insulate you against the attacks of Satan and this world as you go through the day.

Next, the wood stove is the power of God. Though it may be cold and uncomfortable on the outside of your life, knowing that God is in control brings much comfort. And the coffee, that is the working of the Holy Spirit. Miss Deb has a sign above our coffee pot that reads, “Coffee gets me started, Jesus keeps me going.” I tend to enjoy both at the same time each morning – a cup of coffee and some quiet time with Jesus.

Oh yeah, the time around the table with Dad and my brothers, that is the fellowship that you will enjoy today with those who love you. Now those who love you may be a pet, a spouse, children, a friend, or a fellow Christian. It really doesn’t matter who it is that you share life with, just so you share it with someone, including Jesus.

So, turn up your thermostat, get a cup of coffee and praise God for His many blessings in your life today. But, please, don’t forget to spend at least a part of this day with someone else – they need you and you need them. That could even include the folks you spend some time with at the coffee shop.

Enjoying life with you, Neal