Thanksgiving Greetings

 

All blessings past, now and to come,

We thank Thee, dear Lord,

For every one.

I hope that you have a wonderful, wonderful Thanksgiving Day!!
~~~~~

“Thine, O Lord is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom,
O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all.

Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.

Now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name.”

                                                                                                                     1 Chronicles 29:11-13

Adversity 101

Here’s a timely verse that came to my attention that I want to share, but first, the backstory.  You may know, I just had surgery.  Let me tell you a little secret: I am SERIOUSLY not brave when it comes to any kind of medical anything!  My fear was so ENORMOUS that I don’t believe the Grand Canyon could contain it!

But God is bigger, and so is His love for us!

As I recently read the first chapter of 2 Corinthians, the simple truth of this verse rang:

“Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;

Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” 

A beloved friend suggested that I email her mom because her mom had the same surgery years ago.  So I did.  Her mom answered any questions I had, and went a long way in helping me make a decision that needed to be made about my surgery. 

But what was more, her mom set out on a mission to fortify me with encouragement.  She calmed me.  She reminded me to keep my focus centered on the Lord, not the surgery. 

Each day, she sent me scripture.  Each day, she sent me support.  She hardly knows me, but yet, she poured herself out for me!

My friend’s mom is not just someone that has been through the same surgery, but someone that is GIVEN to the Lord. 

Straight away, I could see that she knows God’s comfort.  That her heart is finely attuned with the Lord’s.  That she daily seeks wisdom through His Word. 

As a result - just as the verse says - she is able to comfort them which are in trouble, by the comfort that she has experienced from God.

He chose one of His beloved children, a faithful one, to hold me up when I struggled to stand.

As I made a feeble attempt to tell her how grateful that I am, she writes back that not just the surgery, but

“…other sorts of trials I've faced over the years, have all helped me to get to know God better and to trust Him more.” 

Just like the verse says, her trials, have helped her to get to know God better. 

Her trials have helped her to trust Him more. 

Her trials, not the easy times.

Yep, Adversity 101.  We’re all familiar with that class.  The scope and sequence of His adversity course includes not only helping us to draw near to Him and realize at a deeper level His love for us and His trustworthiness, but also to prepare us so that we can comfort others.  And let me tell you from firsthand experience, she was prepared.  

Well, no doubt about it, I don’t much care for Adversity 101, and I might would skip class if I could get away with it.  I’m not so sure that I pass His course with flying colors either, because I seem to have to repeat it.  But, if that’s what it takes to be all that God wants me to be, then so be it.  After all, I just saw firsthand what good it might do for others, as my friend’s mom so willingly did for me.  Through her, God showed His love and faithfulness.  WOW!  I hope that He will use me that way too.  Maybe I won’t try to skip class after all.

On the Mend

This is just a post to let you know that I’m back home and recuperating.  I’m so glad that the surgery is now behind me!  Thank you so much for lifting me up in prayer!! 

This little Holly Pond Hill picture depicts this cloudy, cozy Sunday afternoon as I rest in bed with a good book, Hallmark Christmas movies, and the sounds of my family fluttering about.  I’ll be glad to get back to the busyness of life, but in the meantime, I relish these moments too.  

I hope that each of you have a blessed week! 

“ Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise.” 
                                                                                                                   Jer. 17:14

Thankfulness In Pictures This Week

Inspired by my sweet friend over at Life on a Back Road, my post today is about things this week that I am thankful for.  I hope you’ll visit her as she attempts to post each day this month.

On bed rest, waiting for surgery next week, to say that I am anxious would be an understatement.  Fearful, is more like it.  I am so thankful that the Lord is addressing my fear.  Verses leap off the page as I spend my morning time with Him.

 

 

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness…For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.”  
                                                                                                        Isaiah 41:10, 13

His “text message” is that He’s going to hold my hand through this!  Wow!  That makes me feel seriously better!

I’m thankful for the surety of the changing seasons that God gave us.  Autumn being my favorite, I get a thrill over even the tiniest of fall things, down to seeing the backside of a fall wreath hanging on our side porch door.

I’m thankful for my hubby’s servants heart and hard working hands, who is pulling more than his fair share.  And I must add, I’m thankful for his fried okra!  He makes the best!

I’m thankful for my relationship with my children. I couldn’t have dreamed up such incredible kids! But God did, and oh how He has blessed me with all three of them!

Here I’m pictured with my oldest daughter, who is my middle child.  She and I frequently are told that we look like twins. ‘Tis rather amusing that her computer’s facial recognition signs me in as her - hee hee - she’d better behave herself!  She does, actually, and polishes her halo twice a day (…and her room, and anything else that my little clean gal can put a shine on!) :D

I’m thankful for the cozy crackling sounds and warm glow as we lit our first fire of the season on Sunday.  

For that matter, I’m thankful for the “lightered stumps” (Huh… I wonder, is that just a southern phrase?) that make for excellent kindling. 

It just occurred to me that lightered stump is quite possibly an unusual thing to put in a thankfulness post, but I am thankful for it, nonetheless. :)

So my next thankfulness subject amused me as I realized the irony of my fire/kindling subject.

I needed a distraction from dreading surgery.  So yesterday my Boy Genius and I set out on a quest to choose a new tablet that would suit me. 

Android?  iOS?  Fire OS (Kindle)?  7 inch?  8?  9?  Oh the choices!  He spent the day with me showing me youtube reviews, he told me techy things that flew right over my head, he patiently repeated and explained further… 

We decided to go for the new Kindle Fire that was released today.  (No affiliation at this point in blogging, just telling you about it.) So I’m thankful for this distraction, and something to look forward to and fiddle with as I recover. 

I’m thankful for a new Victorian chair too, that I am excited about.  I found it at a church rummage sale, but it was already on hold.  I was third on the list of prospective buyers – the first being a lady that owns a bed and breakfast, the second being a church member, and then me.  That didn’t sound too promising.  But the next morning, my hubby was bringing it inside, asking me where do I want to put it!

As I type, I keep getting attention from a certain little someone, so I must add her to my thankful list.  She keeps getting so close as she piles up in bed with me, that I’m having a time capturing any picture here worth posting, but I’ll just post it anyway. :)  

This kind of post is difficult to stop on, because God is infinitely filling our lives with so many reasons to be thankful.  But let me end here by saying, I’m thankful for you, and your visit today!  

If Only I…

 

“If only I looked like that!” 
                                   
                                    “If only I had her position in life!”

                                                                                  “If only I had her skills, her talents…”

Sound familiar?

If you were to be like her, who would be like you?   

God designed you uniquely, and NO ONE CAN TAKE YOUR PLACE.  No one.

God never meant for you to be like anyone else.  So why compare yourself?  He has fashioned you to fulfill His purpose and plans in a way that none other will or can do.

Do you not know how God sees you?

He sees you as His masterpiece. 

He sees you as having immense worth and promise!
 
If someone has made you feel insignificant, well, let me just say, they’ve got problems.  You are of great value to the Lord.  He has plans for you, today, tomorrow, and in the future. 

You are God’s workmanship.  Every trial, every victory, every tear, every joy, has a purpose in your life.  Allow Him to mold and shape you into just what He designed you to be.  

Almighty God, Creator of all, treasures you!  Don’t you think it is about time that you treasure you too?