24 Days of Thanksgiving

Steve preached his lesson today on being thankful. I won’t tell you what it was about (in case he wants to preach it somewhere else one day! You’ll just have to catch the lesson then!)

But being that it’s the holidays and all, I suppose I might as well participate in the Thanksgiving sharing spirit of how we’re blessed. No, it’s not a burden to express thanks. I just forget to do so! A lot!

They’re not in any particular order of importance or preference--just things I’m grateful for. Since Thanksgiving Day is on November 24^th this year, I've written 24 things for which I’m thankful:

1. Food- God declared all animals clean. I am thankful that we have the privilege to eat just about anything—especially bacon. Mmmmmmmm, bacon!
2. Warmth- I’m not a fan of winter. I do appreciate it’s need for plants and watering the lands. But I prefer warmth. It makes me feel, well, warm inside.
3. Freedom—Not just the “American” freedoms, but the spiritual freedoms we have in Christ. The truth has set me free and I am free indeed. And Satan and death no longer have power over me!
4. Friends—We are created for relationships. Friends give hugs when needed, whether asked or not sometimes! They fill a need for belonging, conversation, silence…to pick you up when you’re down instead of kicking you and leaving you there.
5. Enemies—Well, without them how much less would we appreciate our friends? And they keep us on our toes…keep us accountable in a way with the way we live our lives! They’re a reminder to me that they need Jesus, too. Jesus came for them as much as He came for me.
6. Family—It’s true that we don’t get to choose the family we’re born in to, but I’m grateful that we were both born into families that love us and want what’s best for us! And are there for us!
7. Electricity—It’s one of my favorite inventions of all time! Without it, I’d probably go to bed earlier and there’d be no internet, television, radio, computers (eek!), internet (double eek!). But with it, we have the potential to do so much more! (Could imagine a church service without power point?! Ok, maybe you can. But let’s face it, sometimes it helps!)
8. Letters—The correspondence kind, not the alphabet. While it is important to know the alphabet in order to write letters, I appreciate written correspondence. It communicates thoughtfulness to take the time to hand write something. You can’t hit the delete key and start over. If you want to start over you have to well, start over. Or cross out what you don’t want, but the reader can still read it anyways. It takes thought to write without error. And time to put a stamp on it, go to the post office and mail it. I still have letters from friends tucked away safely.
9. Facebook—It allows me to keep up with people that I probably wouldn’t call or write. At least I know something that’s going on in their lives.
10. Reconciliation—Being friends with God. There’s no greater relationship to have that one with God through Jesus.
11. Steve—My husband. A good preacher and teacher. A student of God’s word.  One who is often forgiving, giving and kind.
12. The Printing Press—I love books. I have a lot of books that I want to read, but haven’t yet. School kind of  ruined reading for me. I do like to read, I’m just not as in to it as I used to be when it was for recreation rather than as an assignment. BUT with the printed word we can duplicate so much to share with others!
13. Creamer with Coffee—The person who discovered that you can roast a coffee bean, grind it, then process it with water is a GENIUS! And the same goes for whoever invented creamer. A little coffee with my creamer, please.
14. Grace—Getting something good that I don’t deserve or earned. Getting a present just because someone loves me. That’s what God does. He gave us Jesus just because He loves us and wants us to be with Him!
15. Mercy—Not getting the just punishment for something bad I did. Whew! No eternal separation from God for those who are in Christ. No weeping, no pain. Just joy and service to my Lord in Heaven.
16. Shoes—I love shoes. Boots. Slippers. Sandals. They’re just cool.
17. Fun times with People—Memories are made with people. I rarely have a good memory of something I did by myself. But I remember lots of good things that I did with good people. That’s what life is made of. Memories.
18. The Difficult Times—These are what challenge us to grow in our character. They give us a chance to shine our light of Jesus to the dark world. They can make us or break us. We can let them define us in a negative way, or we can choose to find the good in the difficult circumstance and make the best of it.
19. Plants—They give oxygen for us to breathe. Not just for humans, but for animals, too. We disperse carbon dioxide which plants take in to produce oxygen, which we take in so we can survive. God is a genius.
20. Scars—They’re the memories we have that remind us of how good God is and that he’s not through with us yet. (And it could have been worse!)
21. The Church—The people, not to be confused with the building where the church meets.  They pray for you. Help provide for you. Help you move. Then help you move again. Bring you food when you’re sick or injured. Replace your water heater when it’s broken and profusely flooding your garage. Pay for your plane ticket for your honeymoon. Set up your wedding reception for you. Laugh with you. Cry with you. Share words of advice and wisdom with you. And then prays for you again after they’ve helped you move your stuff one more time that you’ll finally stop moving! (What? Our God is the God of the impossible!)
22. The Combustion Engine—Not to be confused with the Combustible Engine, which apparently I do so often! While I do appreciate the horse and it’s strength and endurance, I appreciate the engine for it’s adaptability. I can go 60 miles, well, in an hour or so. I can fly quickly to see my family by plane in the case of an emergency. Now… if they’d just get that tele-transport machine working! Beam me up!
23. The Power of Touch—Touch has the power to make you feel good or make you feel awful. The right kind of hug can make you feel loved. The wrong kind of hug can creep you out—even just thinking about it. A high 5 can empower you more than a slap on the face. Jesus touched people when they needed it most—as a means of meeting a need—the need to be loved through touch.
24. The Sacrifice of Jesus, the Christ—What more needs to be said about this? Well, ok, fine…I’ll tell you! I am thankful for the selflessness Jesus had to die, to defeat death so that I don’t have to suffer sins consequences to be eternally separated from God. Because of His death and resurrection, I can now have the confidence to come directly before God in confidence and that he will give me grace and mercy in my time of need. And He does.