Thankful Every Day

I have been contemplating the topic of thankfulness for the past few weeks. I thought I would wait until after Thanksgiving Day to write this post. I have noticed an increasing trend on social media sites where people will post things they are thankful for daily in November, and most especially on Thanksgiving Day itself. While I am thankful that people take time out from their busy days to think about what things they are thankful for, I have a couple of observations.

I am thankful for my family, friends, house, and health. We are to be "giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" Ephesians 5:20

I am thankful when we are in want or have plenty, I am thankful when it rains, when it is cold, and when it is hot and dry. I am thankful for the mountain moments in life and I am thankful for the dark valleys. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says to "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (NIV)

I am thankful that I can come before the throne of grace and "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let [my] requests be made known to God." Philippians 4:6

I am thankful that I can gather freely on the Lord's Day to worship Him. I can "Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him and bless His name." Psalm 10:4

I am most thankful for my salvation which was made available to me through my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. "Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!" 2 Corinthians 9:15

Which brings me to my first question- to whom are we thankful?

Most of the posts I read include long lists of people and things that the person writing is thankful for. Most people over the age of about 12 know that when you receive a gift, it is appropriate to read the attached card first and see who the gift is from. After opening the gift then, you say, "Thank you Aunt Sally for this beautiful thing." You don't rip open packages and bags and just generally say I am thankful for all my gifts, you focus your thanksgiving to the one who provide that for which you are thankful. It is God who provides and allows us to have all that we have, whether material goods or people in our lives.

Many people will proclaim their thankfulness and deny the truth of the One who provided that for which they are thankful. "Because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened." Romans 1:21

Secondly, we are to be a thankful people all day, every day, 365 days a year. Let us remember that we should be daily practicing thanksgiving. When I daily (sometimes it is minute by minute) remember that it is God's merciful hand of providence through which all of my life's joys and sorrows are filtered, when I being fully convinced that He alone knows what I need; He alone works all things for my good because I love God and am called according to His purposes (Romans 8:28), then, and only then can I keep myself from falling into the wrong thinking that I am the one in control; being constantly reminded to whom I am thankful. I am made aware of my utter dependence upon Him. I know that it is not my credit to take for all that I have, and can be humbled in my walk before God.

Let us remember to be thankful to God always.

Blessed be the Name of the Lord

Two Sundays ago, our pastor started a sermon series on the book of Job. Job happens to be one of my favorite books of the Bible, as I can relate to Job in some small way, as most of us can. I figured this would be a great series for me to hear right now. The fact that Chad and I were both brought to tears by the end of the first week is an indication that these next few weeks are going to be good for our hearts. While, I don't want to steal my pastor's content, it did get me thinking about posting regarding Job 1:21 where Job says, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord."

We live in a day and age where we buy now and pay later because we don't like waiting. We feel entitled to have lots of stuff. Society pressures us to keep up with the the neighbors. We want the biggest, the best, and the newest. We see and hear about clawing your way to the top and taking what you want. I want what I want, when I want it. Impatience and pride reign supreme. While I am not trying to climb a corporate ladder, I do have some of those same issues in my own life. I wish I could run; wish I didn't live in pain. I want my house a certain way. I think I need the latest gadget or want more of them.

I have just a couple of observations to make. First, I think it is hard every moment of every day to remember that we came into this world with nothing, and all that we have is from God. I mean, when I stop and actually think it through I willingly admit that this is true, but then turn around and walk away and act as if I can scheme and work and make it all happen on my own. As if I were the one getting myself what I feel I deserve. The truth is that it is God who wills; God that gives and takes away. All our effort is futile and puny in God's sovereign plan for our lives. The truth is that the only thing we deserve is punishment. Our pride and arrogance that make us think we control everything, that we alone work to get what we want and we alone provide things to our families, is just one example of our utter sinfulness deserving of hell. The Lord does indeed give. He gives forgiveness and and reconciliation through His son, Jesus Christ, to all who believe.

Second, none of this earthly "stuff" matters. We will not take any of these things with us when we die. Even if, by the grace and favor of God, you amass a fortune, it will be left behind for others. And ultimately we know that we are not to "lay up for ourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal" (Matthew 6:19). Instead of being earthly-focused (focused on self), we should be heavenly-focused (focused on Christ). I should give thanks when the Lord gives, but also when He takes away. He alone is to be glorified, and if I have to walk through the valley instead of running on the mountain tops, my one consistent prayer has been that He may be glorified in me and through me. That I may carry the burden of suffering, suffering well, that He might let others see my light shine, and they would glorify my Father in heaven (Matthew 5:16). So instead of striving to build our empires, we should "lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal." (Matthew 6:20)

May we continually remember that as believers in Christ we "have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20) At the end of the day it isn't about me. It isn't about what I have or who I know. It has been and always will be about Him. I would not have chosen the path I find myself on, but I know that He has a purpose. So I cling to my Savior in the midst of suffering and pray that I might have tunnel vision; to keep my eyes fixed upon Him, and not on all the distractions and desires of the world.

I will leave you with the words of the hymn we sang after the Introduction to Job. My eyes were already tearing up at the conclusion of the sermon, and this hymn really touched me. (If you would like to hear the sermon series -and I highly recommend it-you can catch up here.)

Whate'er My God Ordains Is Right

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
His holy will abideth;
I will be still whate’er He doth;
And follow where He guideth;
He is my God; though dark my road,
He holds me that I shall not fall:
Wherefore to Him I leave it all.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
He never will deceive me;
He leads me by the proper path:
I know He will not leave me.
I take, content, what He hath sent;
His hand can turn my griefs away,
And patiently I wait His day.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
His loving thought attends me;
No poison can be in the cup
That my Physician sends me.
My God is true; each morn anew
I’ll trust His grace unending,
My life to Him commending.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
He is my Friend and Father;
He suffers naught to do me harm,
Though many storms may gather,
Now I may know both joy and woe,
Some day I shall see clearly
That He hath loved me dearly.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
Though now this cup, in drinking,
May bitter seem to my faint heart,
I take it, all unshrinking.
My God is true; each morn anew
Sweet comfort yet shall fill my heart,
And pain and sorrow shall depart.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
Here shall my stand be taken;
Though sorrow, need, or death be mine,
Yet I am not forsaken.
My Father’s care is round me there;
He holds me that I shall not fall:
And so to Him I leave it all.

From Generation to Generation

I have found myself thinking about the past a lot recently. This is not typical for me. I tend to keep moving forward, so I don't get "stuck" there. I am not one to relive the "glory days" or hang on to anger and thus stop forward progression. But lately, my thinking about the past is different. I believe the older I get, the more nostalgic I become. This all started after my mother's passing. Since she was always there and we had constant contact, I never thought much about what would happen when she was gone.

For starters, I find myself intrigued by digging up my genealogical records. Trying to go way back. Where is our family from? What were my grandparents, or great-grandparents like? While none of this information is of real importance in my daily living, it somehow interests me. I also have thought more often about the recent past. Why hadn't I taken more pictures of my mother, or with her? Why did I not record more of her stories and memories she used to share? And probably the biggest question of all, why were there no items past down from other generations to share with my children.

Most of my past isn't worth remembering to be honest, but it did shape who I have become. All the bad things, all the people, every minute of every day, God used to draw me onto Himself. While I don't intend to sit around longing for the "good ol' days"; I do wish our family had more of a story to tell. Months ago, I started to record my life: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Written partially like a memoir and partially just a list of things I remember doing, places I have gone, and things I have learned. Some day I think my children and grandchildren will enjoy reading through some of those things. I know I would love to read through some things like that of my mothers.

So, why do I ramble on about the past? Well, for two reasons.

First, I am so very thankful that God in His mercy reached down and touched my heart that I might believe, and in doing so forever changed our family's trajectory. The Bible mentions in so many places about the blessings and curses that are past down from generation to generation. My prayer has been that we might nurture our children and they might nurture their children, and so on and so on, and that God might be glorified as we do. I pray that the past that I remember from my own childhood, would never repeat itself.

Secondly, this nostalgia has spurred me to make sure I record some memories for future generations. It has reminded to start traditions, and to make meaningful keepsakes. This is why I have started our other blog. Why I create. Why I scrapbook. That I might pass down my faith, my memories, and any wisdom that God has taught me. I will leave you with a verse to inspire you to do the same: "One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts." Psalm 145:4


Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful Lord's Day!!

The Infection of Sin

At my most recent doctor's appointment, I found out that the little bit of redness that had developed around each of the stitches was actually a sign of infection. The doctor said that I would need two weeks of antibiotics to clear it up. It didn't look that bad to me, but he said it is what was happening on the inside that could be more troublesome.

This whole scenario reminded me of our sin. Sometimes we might notice a bit of "redness" and rationalize that it doesn't look too bad. Our sin can seem insignificant if we judge it merely by outward appearance or when we compare it to someone else's sin. If I would have put my foot next to a healthy foot, the infection would have been much more readily apparent. The trouble with sin is that it, like my infection, is more than skin deep. Even what we consider to be a minor sin is a much bigger deal in our hearts.

When we place our minor sins up against the perfection of Christ, it is abundantly clear that we have a raging infection in need of a cure. Our own sin-filled hearts cause us to ignore small things in our life until we are in need of life support. Thankfully, we can rejoice in knowing that Christ is our life support. His blood is our antibiotic. If you have come to saving faith in the Savior who had no sin, and placed your trust in Him, resting in His redemptive work alone for salvation, then you can praise Him for providing your "cure."

A Bad Connection

As I sit here in my comfy chair recovering from the surgery I had 2 days ago, I was thinking. (uh oh, this is sometimes a very scary thing!) I had a nerve impingement in my right ankle. The nerve was still there, still in the right place, but since it was trapped, it was not receiving all the proper signals from my brain. This bad connection not only caused pain but it also caused some numbness and infrequent electric shock sensations.

Since I am unable to get up and do anything right now, I have a LOT of time to sit and think. I have been thinking a lot about prayer. Specifically my prayer life, or the insufficiency of it. As believers, we have a direct line to God. We are able to come boldly before the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16). We have this connection with our Lord in which we are advised to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Sadly, like the nerve in my ankle, we develop an "impingement" of sorts. We get busy. We are tired. We forget. We don't see a need because things are going well. We have others things that we would rather do. This life can start to squeeze out our prayer life if we aren't careful. When our prayer life is lacking, it can cause pain in our lives as well. When we spend less time in prayer, less time in the Word, we find ourselves starting down a rougher path. When we finally look up and see that we have veered off course, trying to do it all on our own, we realize that things would be better if we would have placed a priority on our private time with the Lord. He helps us to prioritize and strengthens us for all that we must accomplish.

It is a huge blessing to be able to cast all our cares upon Him (1 Peter 5:7), to know that the line is open and information is flowing freely. We can trust that He is always listening, ready to hear our confessions, our adoration and thanksgiving; knowing what we need before we even ask for it. Don't let all the worries and busyness of this world impinge on your prayer time with your Lord and Savior. Put Him first, and everything else will fall into place.

The Way Things Are

I have heard it said that the more we learn, the more we realize how little we actually know. I had a similar thought when I heard someone use the expression "due to circumstances beyond my control" recently.

As fallen humans, we tend to be self-centered, which also makes us believe we are "in control." Our society prides itself on climbing the corporate ladder, making decisions, and planning out our futures. I myself am guilty of being, what some might call, a control freak. God, however, continues to graciously and gently remind me of my self limitations. It is mind blowing sometimes to really think back over our lives. We strive and struggle and sometimes lie, cheat and steal to get what we want, just to end up somewhere we never wanted to go. We want so badly to believe we are ultimately the ones in control of everything; then when one little hair gets out of place, and it most assuredly will, we are dumbfounded because we thought we had it all under control.

I stand in awe as I look back on my own life. Some of the things that seemed so hard, or things I didn't want to do, or even choices I made that seemed to go "sideways" and get away from me, have all worked together, to make me who I am today. Even if one of the littlest decisions had been made differently, or even a split second later, and I wouldn't be here, in this same place today. For us to believe that we somehow are in control enough to work all of that out is just plain hubris. God alone is in complete control, and no matter what road you took to get here, it was exactly the right path; including all the dirt, debris, luggage, and heartache. We are right where God intended us to be.

May we stop pretending to have it all under control, and thank God for all He has guided us through. I leave you with a lengthy scripture reading from Job 38-39 to help put things in perspective:



38 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said:
2 “Who is this who darkens counsel
By words without knowledge?
3 Now prepare yourself like a man;
I will question you, and you shall answer Me.
4 “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
Tell Me, if you have understanding.
5 Who determined its measurements?
Surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?
6 To what were its foundations fastened?
Or who laid its cornerstone,
7 When the morning stars sang together,
And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
8 “Or who shut in the sea with doors,
When it burst forth and issued from the womb;
9 When I made the clouds its garment,
And thick darkness its swaddling band;
10 When I fixed My limit for it,
And set bars and doors;
11 When I said,
‘This far you may come, but no farther,
And here your proud waves must stop!’
12 “Have you commanded the morning since your days began,
And caused the dawn to know its place,
13 That it might take hold of the ends of the earth,
And the wicked be shaken out of it?
14 It takes on form like clay under a seal,
And stands out like a garment.
15 From the wicked their light is withheld,
And the upraised arm is broken.
16 “Have you entered the springs of the sea?
Or have you walked in search of the depths?
17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you?
Or have you seen the doors of the shadow of death?
18 Have you comprehended the breadth of the earth?
Tell Me, if you know all this.
19 “Where is the way to the dwelling of light?
And darkness, where is its place,
20 That you may take it to its territory,
That you may know the paths to its home?
21 Do you know it, because you were born then,
Or because the number of your days is great?
22 “Have you entered the treasury of snow,
Or have you seen the treasury of hail,
23 Which I have reserved for the time of trouble,
For the day of battle and war?
24 By what way is light diffused,
Or the east wind scattered over the earth?
25 “Who has divided a channel for the overflowing water,
Or a path for the thunderbolt,
26 To cause it to rain on a land where there is no one,
A wilderness in which there is no man;
27 To satisfy the desolate waste,
And cause to spring forth the growth of tender grass?
28 Has the rain a father?
Or who has begotten the drops of dew?
29 From whose womb comes the ice?
And the frost of heaven, who gives it birth?
30 The waters harden like stone,
And the surface of the deep is frozen.
31 “Can you bind the cluster of the Pleiades,
Or loose the belt of Orion?
32 Can you bring out Mazzaroth in its season?
Or can you guide the Great Bear with its cubs?
33 Do you know the ordinances of the heavens?
Can you set their dominion over the earth?
34 “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,
That an abundance of water may cover you?
35 Can you send out lightnings, that they may go,
And say to you, ‘Here we are!’?
36 Who has put wisdom in the mind?
Or who has given understanding to the heart?
37 Who can number the clouds by wisdom?
Or who can pour out the bottles of heaven,
38 When the dust hardens in clumps,
And the clods cling together?
39 “Can you hunt the prey for the lion,
Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
40 When they crouch in their dens,
Or lurk in their lairs to lie in wait?
41 Who provides food for the raven,
When its young ones cry to God,
And wander about for lack of food?


39 “Do you know the time when the wild mountain goats bear young?
Or can you mark when the deer gives birth?
2 Can you number the months that they fulfill?
Or do you know the time when they bear young?
3 They bow down,
They bring forth their young,
They deliver their offspring.
4 Their young ones are healthy,
They grow strong with grain;
They depart and do not return to them.
5 “Who set the wild donkey free?
Who loosed the bonds of the onager,
6 Whose home I have made the wilderness,
And the barren land his dwelling?
7 He scorns the tumult of the city;
He does not heed the shouts of the driver.
8 The range of the mountains is his pasture,
And he searches after every green thing.
9 “Will the wild ox be willing to serve you?
Will he bed by your manger?
10 Can you bind the wild ox in the furrow with ropes?
Or will he plow the valleys behind you?
11 Will you trust him because his strength is great?
Or will you leave your labor to him?
12 Will you trust him to bring home your grain,
And gather it to your threshing floor?
13 “The wings of the ostrich wave proudly,
But are her wings and pinions like the kindly stork’s?
14 For she leaves her eggs on the ground,
And warms them in the dust;
15 She forgets that a foot may crush them,
Or that a wild beast may break them.
16 She treats her young harshly, as though they were not hers;
Her labor is in vain, without concern,
17 Because God deprived her of wisdom,
And did not endow her with understanding.
18 When she lifts herself on high,
She scorns the horse and its rider.
19 “Have you given the horse strength?
Have you clothed his neck with thunder?
20 Can you frighten him like a locust?
His majestic snorting strikes terror.
21 He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength;
He gallops into the clash of arms.
22 He mocks at fear, and is not frightened;
Nor does he turn back from the sword.
23 The quiver rattles against him,
The glittering spear and javelin.
24 He devours the distance with fierceness and rage;
Nor does he come to a halt because the trumpet has sounded.
25 At the blast of the trumpet he says, ‘Aha!’
He smells the battle from afar,
The thunder of captains and shouting.
26 “Does the hawk fly by your wisdom,
And spread its wings toward the south?
27 Does the eagle mount up at your command,
And make its nest on high?
28 On the rock it dwells and resides,
On the crag of the rock and the stronghold.
29 From there it spies out the prey;
Its eyes observe from afar.
30 Its young ones suck up blood;
And where the slain are, there it is.”

Letting Pain Be Our Guide

If you have ever been sick, or injured or have dealt with any physical ailment, like me, you have probably had a conversation with your doctor about what activities are safe to do. I have had this discussion multiple times in an effort to determine which activities are safe and which will bring more pain or damage. Almost without exception I hear these words, "Let pain be your guide." As I was pondering those words this morning, I decided this was much better advice than I first thought.

All of us, as fallen human beings, know the pain this life brings. Sometimes it is a literal, physical pain; other times, it is more subtle- the pain of rejection, heartbreak, grief, disappointment, bitterness. Pain reminds us that we are mortal. Pain tells us we are weak and frail. Pain screams to us that this life is temporary. Pain constantly whispers in our ear that there are consequences, both physical and emotional, that this sinful world brings. Pain points us to that Future Hope that is without pain.

We cannot escape pain in this world, but we can learn to let it be our guide. Let pain guide you to the cross. Let pain guide you to your knees in prayer. Let pain guide you to the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for He alone can bring true relief.

Are you letting pain be your guide, or are you still ignoring it?