Thankfullness #9...

I am thankful for my man.

I am thankful for all the nonsense, the wisecracks, all the picking and teasing… There are very few hours that pass that he does not in some way acknowledge my worth to him…certainly never a day of the last 37+ years.

I am thankful for the morals that he has, the standards by which he endeavors to live, and the integrity that he strives to maintain.

I am thankful that he has never lorded himself over me, but has instead always had a servant heart. Not only does he think he’s not above any task, he considers that I am…and steps in to perform them instead.

I am thankful for the genuine concern he has for other people, the strong convictions about right and wrong, fairness, justice…

And I am thankful for the compassionate heart that has not become hard and calloused over the years, in spite of seeing and experiencing so much of human sinfulness and suffering.

He is a mighty man of God, my knight in shining armor.

Thankfullness #8....

I am thankful for seasons.

I love them all and my favorite one is usually whichever one we are in at the moment. (…unless I’m cold…I don’t like to be cold, but it takes more and more to make me be cold these days !!..)

When it is springtime, I enjoy watching the leaves sprout and the flowers begin to bloom, the birds building nests and laying eggs.

When it is summer, I love our garden, working the soil, enjoying fresh vegetables on our dinner table. I love a freshly mown lawn, the scent of honeysuckle in the evening air, and dips in the lake or swimming pool.

When it is fall, as it is now, I love watching the leaves change colors before my eyes. I love the smell, the warmth and the crackling sound of a fire as I sit on the patio by our chiminea sipping a cup of coffee.

When it is winter, I love the way snowflakes fall so silently and cover creation with a blanket of white that looks so incredibly serene and peaceful. I love the curling of the smoke coming from our chimney, the patterns of frost on the windshield, and the way it shimmers from the roofs of the houses.


I would tire of any one of the seasons. You would too.


God was wise to give us change in the seasons. We get bored so easily….an opportunity for the enemy to lead us into disobedience and rebellion.



“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

...I know that everything God does will endure forever…” (Ecc. 3 select verses)



Seasons don’t last.

The leaves bud and grow, they become lush and green, then change into brilliant colors, eventually falling to the ground to decay. They don’t last…

But they come back..

My life has seen many seasons. I’ve been thru lots of phases and experienced lots of growing pains. Certainly not suffered like some have, and certainly not from any merit of my own.

I’m nearing the autumn of an average life. Winter will come, this body will become dormant. And die.

And I will enter an eternal season with our Creator, with a glorified body, walking on the streets of glory.



“....Desperate, I throw myself on you: you are my God! Hour by hour I place my days in Your hand, safe from those who pursue me…….warm me, Your servant, with a smile; save me because You love me. (Ps. 31:14-16)



I love life. I love the seasons. And I love the God Who gave them both….



“ Blessed be the name of God, forever and ever. He knows all, does all:

He changes the seasons and guides history,
He raises up kings and also brings them down,
He provides both intelligence and discernment,
He opens up the depths, tells secrets, sees in the dark--light spills out of Him!

God of all my ancestors, all thanks! all praise! (Daniel 2:20-23)

Thankfullness #7.....

I am thankful for children.

I love babies. They are so very small and helpless. A tiny little human being is such a wonder !

I love toddlers. They are so curious, constantly learning, absorbing new information all the time.

I love adolescents. They are so awkward, ready to explore the world while still loving to be coddled.

I love teenagers. They are so sure of themselves, so confident in their own wisdom and ability.

I love adult children best…..

One day they see how tiny they still are in the grand scheme of things.
They see how small a human being is, yet how incredibly important.
They begin to see how much they don’t know….. and admit it.
They begin to embrace the wisdom of other rather than claiming they don’t need it.
They embrace the awkwardness of living in this world where we have no control except of personal choice.


They begin to see the older generation thru different eyes, seeing beyond surface and circumstance. They begin to see the frailty and weakness that was there all along and appreciating the battle we refused to stop fighting.


I loved my sons when they were in the womb, never having seen them or known them.
I loved the infants that nuzzled at my breast.
I loved the toddlers who hid under the bed and spilled their milk.
I loved the adolescents,so happy yet utterly miserable, fighting to mature yet stay babies.
I loved the teenagers who were so sure they were smarter than me.


I love the adult sons who now see my efforts instead of my mistakes.
I love the adult sons who are willing to share themselves freely with their parents.
I love the adult sons recognize the passing of time, and understand that it is limited.
I love the adult sons whose desire is to fill our needs as fully as their needs were filled.
I love the adult sons who ask what I think, and genuinely value my input.



“Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one's youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their enemies in the gate.”(Psa. 127:3)


I am thankful for the two sons we are blessed with. I am thankful to know they will always be there for us as we grow older and older. My heart rests in knowing they will care for us when we can not.


I am thankful that our two sons acknowledge our Creator God, and thankful that He will guide them into all truth, one step at a time….. Just as He did with their father and I. He will make them into mighty men of God as they walk in His truth.


“I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.”(3John 1:4)


“Listen to your father, who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old. Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline and understanding.
The father of a righteous man has great joy; he who has a wise son delights in him.
May your father and mother be glad; may she who gave you birth rejoice!
My son, give me your heart and let your eyes keep to my ways,..”(Pro. 23:22-26)




Lord, help me listen as an adult child to my own words. Help me to continue to make my father and mother glad, may I be a blessing to them, a reward from You, an arrow in their hand, contending with any enemy, may I bring them joy as I walk in Your truth, may I never despise but always delight in them and value their wisdom.

Thankfullness #6

11-7-2011
I am thankful for color.

Especially this time of year.

I just drove to town and back and the colors of the leaves are just stunning.

My sweet man can explain to you just exactly how that happens and why. He loves to understand the ‘how’ behind God’s design. (..when he can..) Understanding the ‘how’ doesn’t change the wonder and awe of it for either of us. God is such a creative Creator ! Leaves change colors because of a certain activitiy that is going on within them.

Not that I care really, certainly not like my man does. I just know that God did it and I love it.

"…He changes times and seasons….. (Daniel 2:20)

In every season, there is evidence of His majesty.

Stop and look with wonder at His creation. Do it on purpose. Today. Right now.
Oh let us not loose the ‘Wow!’ of it !!

“…… turn from…. worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them…….He has not left Himself without testimony:…”(Acts 14:15)

He is God !! And He designed all that is reality to us !! Not me, not you, no human…. If you disagree, answer a few of the questions He asked Job.


"Job, have you ever commanded the morning to come? Have you ever shown the sun where to rise?”

“ What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed, or the place where the east winds are scattered over the earth?”

“Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons?”

“Do you know the laws of the heavens?…. tip over the water jars of the heavens…?”
(Job 38 select verses)

He is God.


"Think about this. Wrap your minds around it. This is serious business……….

I am GOD…

The only God you've had or ever will have-- incomparable, irreplaceable--

From the very beginning telling you what the ending will be. All along letting you in on what is going to happen, Assuring you, 'I'm in this for the long haul, I'll do exactly what I set out to do,..”(Isa. 46:8-10 The Message)




Praise the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, you are very great;

You are clothed with splendor and majesty.…
You stretch out the heavens like a tent …
You make the clouds Your chariot…….
You set the earth on its foundations….

You make grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate—
The moon marks off the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down.
You bring darkness, it becomes night….

How many are Your works, O LORD!
In wisdom You made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures.

May the glory of the LORD endure forever…


I will sing to the LORD all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

May my meditation be pleasing to Him, as I rejoice in the LORD.
(Psalm 104 select verses)

Hallelujah.

Thankfullness #5

11-6-11
I am thankful for technology.

I know technology has brought a lot of undesirable stuff into the inner sanctuary of our home, but the devil intends to bring his evil into every realm., and he uses every means and every angle….in every generation and every culture. We are wise to learn his standard operating procedures and learn to recognize them immediately, shutting him down before he gets his stinky foot in the door.

Sure, there is a lot of porn on the internet. But there are thousands of excellent sources for Chrisitians to learn and grow or be entertained.

Sure, email and Facebook etc. remove the face to face, up-close-and-personal ways of relating to others. But there are thousands of friendships that are born and grow from the cyber world of social networking. Hundreds of friends and relatives are re-connected and communicating on a regular basis, sharing their lives thru words and photographs or videos.


There are lots of negatives to the social technology of today. (….I seem to remember the same said of television and satellite recievers…) Some things are most certainly of an evil nature, but the way to block out evil is not to do away with television or internet. Instead, we must choose to use them wisely and in obedience to how God created us to live.

There’s a way to navigate away from bad web-sites, and there’s a channel changer and off switch on the television. We again get to choose, use it….for good or for evil.

“………… God created humankind upright, but they have gone in search of many schemes." (Ecc. 7:29)

Humans are capable of making a mess of pretty much anything. And there is a very real spiritual realm that will help us do just that.

“….here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”(Ecc. 12:13,14)

That includes what you do in your cyber-world.


I was almost finished with this reflection last night when the computer sitting across my lap began to sway and I realized that I’d just experienced an earthquake. For the next several minutes, I visited in cyberspace with people from miles away and from people close by, who had also felt the earth move and heard it groaning. Instantly, before the television news had anything to report, I heard from my friends all over Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas about the event.

A few weeks ago, my son and his family experienced an earthquake in New Jersey. In moments I knew about it, heard them share their experience, and knew they were ok. Cell phone and video call technology….

Another reason to be thankful for technology !

Thankfullness #4

I am thankful for music .

I don’t remember the time that I did not sing. I grew up singing alto at church. I sang at many a wedding and funeral. I sang in talent shows, in the school choir….I sang along with records, 8 tracks, and transistor radios.

Glen Campbell was young and handsome, Rod Stewart was old and kinda weird…but I sang along with them both. I imagined myself as Connie Francis and Karen Carpenter…..

I am thankful now that I was neither one.

I can hardly remember when I couldn’t play the piano, even though I’ve never been an accomplished pianist.

My mother had an upright piano that her daddy bought her before she married and left home. It was hers, so it was ours, and it took up a big part of our living room for many years.

Somewhere along the way, she taught me to read the lines and spaces of music out of a church hymn book. The first song I learned to play was “What A Friend We Have In Jesus”.

He’s still the best Friend I have.

I thank Him this morning for how music ministers to my soul in ways that nothing else can.
I thank Him this morning for the love of music in both my husband and sons.

And I ask Him to use the love of music that He has placed within each of us for our good and His glory and honor.

After all, it was His idea……..

Thankfullness #3....

I am thankful for joy.

I almost said laughter, but laughter is not always something pleasant. Laughter can indicate derision or ridicule. Laughter can even hide pain.

There is no mistaking joy.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22)


Joy can be present even in the most difficult moments.

I’ve known people suffering, fighting for life…and witnessed joy. I think of my own hours of childbirth…certainly no laughter, but filled with joy.

Only God can bring joy out of circumstances that are unpleasant at best.

“….Messages of joy instead of news of doom, a praising heart instead of a languid spirit…..” (Isa. 61:3The Message)

Only God can redeem. And He can even redeem anxiousness, sorrow, and hurt, bringing about joy.

“ When anxiety was great within me, Your consolation brought joy to my soul. “(Ps. 94:19)

“You have made known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in your Presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right Hand.”(Ps. 16:11)


“The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song. The LORD is the strength of His people…”(Ps. 28:7,8)

Thank You Lord for the joy You have brought to my heart and life.....the joy of my family, my friends, my home, Your marvelous creation all around me… Thank you for simple pleasures of life and the capacity You have given me to find joy in them.