Faithful Through the Year: May Edition
Faithful Through the Year: May Edition
Title: Millie’s Porch & the Shattered Cup
Theme: A Mother’s Love, Unseen Kindness, and the Courage to Mend What’s Broken
Scripture Focus: Isaiah 66:13 — “As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you.”
Story: Millie’s Porch & the Shattered Cup
Millie Henley loved her front porch like some folks loved their family heirlooms—and in many ways, it was both. Built by her late husband and painted yearly with the help of her grandkids, the wraparound porch was her storytelling spot, her tea-sipping sanctuary, and her way of keeping an eye on Maple Lane’s comings and goings.
Every year, Millie hosted a “May Porch Tea” during the town’s Spring Fair—an unofficial tribute to mothers, mentors, and anyone who’d ever patched scraped knees or hearts.
This year, she’d set the table with her favorite floral teacups and the rose-print tablecloth stitched by her own mama. Everything was picture-perfect—until the storm hit.
It wasn’t a weather storm—it was a man. A stranger in town, young and scruffy, carrying a duffel bag and an anxious edge. He’d shown up during the fair, looking for work, asking questions about the old Maple Lane Bakery.
Millie had offered him a scone and a seat on her porch, like she always did for anyone who looked lost.
But the moment his elbow knocked one of her precious teacups off the table, everything changed.
The crash was sharp. The silence sharper. He stammered apologies, eyes wide with shame.
And something in Millie’s heart broke open with the sound of the porcelain.
“Tell me your story,” she said gently.
He paused. Then, slowly, spilled bits and pieces—his mama had died last spring. He’d drifted. Worked odd jobs. He’d heard his grandmother once lived here, maybe owned a shop near the square. He wasn’t sure. He was chasing memory.
Millie didn’t ask more. Instead, she reached down, swept up the broken cup, and set it aside.
“I can fix it,” she said. “I’ve got gold glue. Ever heard of kintsugi?”
The young man blinked. “What’s that?”
“It’s the Japanese art of mending broken pottery with gold. Makes the cracks part of the beauty. I like to think that’s how God sees us too.”
He smiled, a little. And stayed long enough to help her paint porch chairs and clear away tea cups.
No one knew his name that day. But weeks later, when Clara found an old bakery deed with a woman’s name that matched his family tree, the town put the pieces together.
And Millie? She kept the gold-lined cup on her porch table. A reminder that broken things—like people—can come home and be made new.
Reflection Prompt:
Has there been a time when someone unexpected came into your life and helped you see God’s comfort or purpose in a new way?
How can you offer grace to someone who might be “on the run” from something broken?
Prayer:
Lord, thank You for being the One who doesn’t turn away when things break. Help me offer comfort like a mother’s touch, like Millie’s porch—open, warm, and full of hope. Let me see gold in the cracks, beauty in the mending, and family in the strangers I meet. Amen.
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