Thankfulness at Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday.  It’s my favorite because it’s not all hyped up like most of the other holidays we celebrate here in the US.  This is a time of year, crunched in-between all the hoopla over Halloween and Christmas, where we get to pause and enjoy the company of our family.  Either a loved one cooks a well-thought out dinner with all the trimmings or it’s a fun loving family-of-all-kinds pot luck dinner.  It’s a time to just spend with one another, to converse about deep things or not-so-deep things.  A time to laugh with and enjoy the people you love.  It’s also a time to reflect upon the blessings we have.  A time to be thankful to the Lord Almighty for all the provisions He has made for us during the year. This year, the Lord has blessed me with a healthy family, children who are blossoming into wonderful people, a husband who still has his job, and provided me with a job that is giving me soul satisfaction. If we all stay focused on these good things through the Christmas hub-bub and remember what is going well in our lives, our hearts will stay peaceful and continue to rest in the Lord.

Now don’t get me wrong.  I’m not going all “Pollyana” on you here.  This year has also given me some tremendous challenges.  Even in the past two weeks I’ve been pushed beyond reason and don’t really understand why, but the fact of the matter is that I don’t need to know why.  All I need to know is that I have a God that loves me more faithfully than I can fathom and He will help me through all circumstances.  I am at peace with that and that alone will carry me through.  God rocks!!

May all of you who read my little blog have a happy and thankful Thanksgiving.  Love to you all!

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Thankful Thursday!

Two years ago today, we adopted our third child and second beautiful daughter from Nanning, China.  It was such a bittersweet moment for us; knowing that we were adding to our family and taking this child from the only world she has ever known.  I was so happy to finally have her in my arms after waiting for a little over 2 years to bring her home.

We were first in line to take our child home that day.  The most remarkable part for me was that she didn’t cry when they  “handed her over.”  Most kids cry when a complete stranger holds them..DD#2 did not.  In fact, she gave me a small smile!  It was wonderful!  However, she did cry once all the other children started to cry.  It’s hard to stay composed when 11 other children are screaming bloody murder…I understand!

She is such a wonderful child…so full of energy, happiness and joy.  She is a wonderful addition to our family and I am so thankful for her and her birth parents.  Without her birth parents making that incredibly difficult decision to leave her at the orphanage doorstep 3 years ago I wouldn’t have this wonderful child as my own.  God took a difficult and horrible situation and turned it to good by placing her in our arms two years ago.  God is good!

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Thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday is upon me again!  The funny thing is that when I come to write these posts I have a hard time finding things to be thankful for!  Isn’t that awful?  I guess I need to refocus on life in general and look for things in a positive manner.  In that regard I am reminded on Corrie Ten Boom in her book “The Hiding Place”  and her sister Betsie.  They found so many things to be thankful for in the prisons that they were put into during WWII.  It was amazing the gratitude that they had for the little that they actually had with them.  All their worldly possessions were taken away, their dignity, their family, their lives were essentially blotted out for a time…and yet they were thankful to the LORD.  Especially Betsie…what an amazing pair!  So certainly, I, in my privileged life can find more gratitude for the LORD of all!

SO I am thankful for the home that I have, the children in my life, the people I have that I call friends, my parents, the freedom to speak my mind, the freedom to write a blog and not be censored, the freedom to worship my LORD as I choose and when I choose, new friends and old friends, prayer, and a faith that does not fail me in good times or in bad.

I am especially thankful for a moment this morning.  I went to video DD#1 at school today so I took the kids into school at the start of the day instead of dropping them off in carpool.  Well, this little change in my DS’s routine must have upset his OCD mind.  When I was leaving DD#1’s classroom, DS’ teacher was bringing him out in the hall to speak with him.  Apparently he was having a difficult morning.  This allowed me to briefly speak with him and the teacher and to PRAY with him and for him in the hallway.  You see, he’s been having a good week…we have been praying every morning together for his day ahead.  This morning we were so rushed we forgot…so the LORD gave us the opportunity to pray at the school.  I pray his day is continuing well.  I am thankful for that opportunity!

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Blessings from God

God’s blessings are sent our way everyday.  The question is do we recognize them?  If you have been reading along you know that I have had a struggle with finding wire hangers!  Ugh.  I just need to trust the Lord more.  My friends from church and my neighborhood gladly donated hangers without me really asking directly.  And wouldn’t you know it…but the number of hangers they gave were the exact number I needed.  I didn’t have any leftover hangers and didn’t have any leftover clothes.  God is so good!

Now I realize that some people may simply see this as a coincidence and may even suggest that I asked for the right number of hangers.  But I strongly disagree!  First off, I don’t believe in coincidences.  I believe in a LORD that ordains all things in the universe and everything is done according to a greater plan.  There is nothing too small or too big for my God to be concerned with in my life.  He loves His children and desires to give us what we need if we ask Him (see Matthew 7:11).  Secondly, I never asked for a certain number of hangers.  My friends gladly provided what they had or what they were able to give.  The number worked on it’s own!  Yay God!

So now that I’m done tagging and hanging items I’m able to see where I should not have worried.  That if it was in God’s plan for me to send all these items to consignment all would work out and work out well.  It’s so easy in this life to worry about things that we should not worry about.  If we pray about our circumstances, no matter how small or large, the LORD will provide and answer our prayers.  We (I) need to practice leaving my requests at the LORD’s feet and not taking them back!  Things would be much easier if I would remember this promise of His…

“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own.” ~Matthew 6:31-34

I think everyone who can call themselves a Child of God needs to keep these verses in our minds and in our hearts in the months to come.  Our privileged lives in America will not be easy in the coming months.  But take heart!  The LORD knows what we need and will provide for those who love Him.  He will not leave us unattended!  Even something as small as a provision of hangers is within His grasp!  Wow!

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Thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday again!  It seems  like it was just Thursday the other day!  So here we go…I am thankful for:

• seeing my old friends from Texas before they move to Jakarta
• a great phone card that will allow me to call my friend in Jakarta at 4.5 cents a minute
• the fact that I’m an American woman
• the freedom to study the bible, pray, and attend church without persecution
• my friend getting to see an ultrasound of her soon to be newly adopted son

That’s it for today…I’m a bit tired and can’t think very well.  Hope you alll have a blessed day!

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