A Spirit of Gratitude: August 31

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

The cat not putting up a fight when I replace his claw caps

Allergy medicine

 Baked potatoes

Cooler weather

Isaiah 41:13

Itsy Bitsy... Whatever!

I have finally found the one thing scarier than a big ol' hairy spider!  

A teeny, tiny, so small you can barely see it spider!  

 

credit

Scarier...
 because you can see a big spider coming.  You know it's there and can prepare for it
(or at least scream and run away while someone else takes care of it.)

A little bitty teeny spider?

You don't see it.  Until it's right there. 
On! Your! Hand!
Crawling around like it owns the place.

And THAT is scary!!

A Spirit of Gratitude: August 29

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

The grand baby saying "Pa" (complete with hand motions)

The male offspring cutting grass without arguing about it first

Kissing the Man of the House "good morning" before he leaves for work

Female offspring helping clean up the living room

Vanilla coffee

photo credit: worldmarket.com

Enough!

I'm a quitter.

I've quit a large percentage of things I have started during my lifetime so far.  From dance classes to hobbies to college - I've quit.

And then there's the even longer list of things I never even started.

Why? Why quit?

I start off strong. Full of hope and determination.

Then the doubt creeps in.  The worry.  The need for approval and it's twin the fear of rejection. That little voice in the back of my head telling my I'm not good/smart/talented/pretty/educated/qualified/brave enough.  Whispering that I don't have enough time.  Or energy.  Maybe even making me believe I'm not needed or wanted.

(Perhaps you recognize yourself in me?)

The time has come to stop listening to the doubt and fear.  Start listening to the Truth.

The Truth reminds me that God made me enough! I am:

• Good enough         
• Smart enough         
• Talented enough     
• Strong enough        
• Courageous enough

To complete anything He wants me to do! 

I just have to say "Yes God - whatever you want" and stick with it. 

I think I just came pretty close to havng me a 'Stuart Smalley' moment there.  Anyone else remember him from old Saturday Night Live skits?

Living It

God has been showing me a lot about trusting Him lately.  Telling me to keep my eyes, and my heart, on Him and walk the path He sets before me.  To read and hear His word and act upon it.

That's really the tricky part, isn't it?  Acting on it.

Living it out in complete faith.

To walk in faith and love every step.  To fill your life with praise and worship even when the going gets tough. 

It's easy to read the Bible and various daily devotionals and feel inspired for those few minutes and maybe a short while after. But God isn't after a few minutes.  He's after every minute.  Every hour.  Every day of my life.

How do I let it become part of my very being?  How do I live so that every word I say and every deed I act reflects His love, faithfulness and grace back to the world?  To completely let go and trust in the Lord and His plan for me?

It's WHAT?

It's the last week of August, y'all!  The last week!  Of August!

I don't know about you, but for me this year is flying by just way too quickly.

Especially once we hit this point.  School started yesterday.  Which means that in the blink of an eye it will be Halloween. And then Thanksgiving is just around the corner, which starts the whole holiday season time warp.

That's right.  Christmas is less than 4 months away. Which for some of you might seem like just all the time in the world.  But for the craft minded - those of us planning to crochet/knit/sew/etc many of our gifts - it is time to get busy!  For us, those months are short, short, short!  (If you've ever been crocheting like a crazy woman on December 23 - or worse, Christmas eve - you know what I'm talking about!)

I'm getting my plans in place for what I want to make a few certain special someones.  And no, I'm not sharing what they are - because I know most of those special someones happen to read this here blog.  You'll just have to wait and be surprised.

The Song In My Heart

Participating in the Proverbs 31 Ministries Online Bible Study "What Happens When Women Say Yes to God" has had this song running through my head all week.

That Time "Duck Dynasty" Made Me Cry

Yes.. you read that right.  I watch "Duck Dynasty". I admit it.

Oh, be quiet.  It makes me happy, happy, happy.

It was during the season premiere that the show brought tears to my eyes.  And for the first time it wasn't from laughing at Si's antics. 

It was Phil and Kay's renewal ceremony which left me sniffling on the couch.


For those of you who have not found yourselves somehow addicted to this show and it's special brand of rednecks - Phil is the patriarch of the Robertson family and Kay is his sweet wife.  They were married young at the justice of the peace and never had a "real" wedding.  So for their anniversary the sons (thanks to some nagging encouragement from their own wives) threw them the wedding they never had.

To see the love these two people have for each other after almost 50 years together was so touching!

And, HEY... I always cry at weddings!

Sisters

A couple of weekends ago I got to spend time with my sisters for a few hours one afternoon.

I was happy to get to see one of my nieces.  It was great to meet my first nephew.  And to see one of my brothers in law.  And for us to be with our dad for his birthday.

But most of all, it was nice to have the three sister all together. Since the three of us are now scattered across the southern United States - it doesn't happen very often that we are all together in one place at the same time.

And I miss that.

I miss the way we can all talk at the same time, and still manage to keep track of and understand what each of the others is saying.

I miss how we all share the same memories. And can tell the stories over and over and over without ever seeming to tire of them.

I miss how we laugh at the same things.

I miss our competitiveness.

How we are all completely different - but somehow the same

I even miss the way we can drive each other crazy, but still manage to love each other.

Spending time with my sisters somehow left me craving even more.  More of them.  More time together.  More memories made.  More laughing with them.

The time we had together made miss them that much stronger now that we are all back in our own states, with our own families, and our own lives.

A Spirit of Gratitude: August 22

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

Grand baby all sticky from eating Rice Krispie treats

Grand baby snuggling up with his grandpa
Finding time to write
New ideas for Queen B's Busy Work
 When God makes me laugh
Watching bad movies with the family

The male offspring with a fresh haircut

Caramel candy

Unconditional Love

I am constantly amazed by how God loves!!   He loves us all unconditionally.  The saved. The sinners.  Christians, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, atheist.  Old, young.  Rich or poor.  Every last one of us.  He loves us.

That doesn't mean He approves of everything we do.  Or that He turns a blind eye to it.  He doesn't dismiss our transgressions.  He despises the sin in our lives.  But He still loves us no matter what - even with all of our shortcomings.

His heart aches for those who don't know Him.  Don't trust Him.  Don't believe in Him.  Even as they reject Him - He loves them.

He loves us.  And all He wants is our love and acceptance in return.  For us to come to Him, to say "Yes" and step into the warmth of His perfect, unconditional, eternal Love for us. 

Delayed

It drives me crazy.  

I tell the offspring to do something.  (maybe it's to empty the dishwasher, maybe take out the trash - the what isn't important)  The offspring doesn't move.

I make my request again.  And a response along the lines of "OK, in a minute" comes back at me. 

I tell him (or her) AGAIN. With slightly less patience this time. This time I hear "I will" or "I'm going to".

By this point in the exchange, I am fuming.  If I asked to have it done, I want it done when I ask.  Quit stalling and just DO IT already!

It was during one of these times when God asked me: "How often do you do the same thing to me?"

Oh...

So many times I have felt tug at my heart with something (maybe it was to call that friend or relative, or to write a note or send a card to someone - the what isn't important) and I have turned the other way.  I put it off, thinking to myself "Sure, I'll get to that later". 

Does it hurt and frustrate God when I delay doing something he has asked of me in the same way it does me with my own children? I'm sure it probably does. 

"If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn't do it, it is sin for them." ~ James 4:17


Delayed obedience is the same as disobedience. 

Stop putting it off.  Just DO IT already!

A Spirit of Gratitude:

I AM THANKFUL FOR:

Grand baby running up and hugging my legs

A NEW sewing machine

Surprises

Cheeseburgers

Root beer floats