For the month of November, I am going to be focusing on thankfulness. Each day I will list something that I am thankful for; blessings from God. Not the “Sunday School” answers of “my family, my home, my job…” but the daily grind blessings that sometimes go unnoticed. I will be posting these on this blog, the ABCJLM website, and Facebook to let the world know that God is into the details of our lives and we have much to be thankful for.
Day #1: My children have a Daddy who values time with them so much that he changed his work hours to start at 6:00 am so that he can be home more in the evenings with them. He also works out before they are out of bed to maximize the time together. We are blessed.
Day #2: When I am cold, I have the option to put on more clothing or turn up the furnace. We are blessed.
Day #3: I thank God that He gives me “kisses on the cheek.” Those little things that I don’t deserve but God blesses me with. Maybe an insight into a “why” or a reminder that He loves me or a moment in time that God tells me that what I do daily is worth the effort, energy, and time. We are blessed.
Day #4: We have an amazing support group of friends both in our inner circle and surrounding friendships. I praise God for those people He has placed in our lives who encourage us when we are weak and hold us accountable; cry with us when we hurt and laugh with us through the joys of life. We are blessed.
Day #5: The older I get the more I realize how amazing my childhood was. I thank God for those people who poured into my life – family, friends, and adults from church. So much of the content on this blog and ABCJLM came from them. We are blessed.
Day #6: As I think back through Bubs’ life, I praise God for the doctors, surgeons, cardiologist, Occupational Therapist, Speech Therapist and nurses who have helped Bubs live a normal life. We are blessed.
Day #7: I thank God for giggles and laughter. It is healing to the broken hearted. We are blessed.
Day #8: Thank you, God, for the man who has chosen to dance through life with me. The man that I call my best friend. The man that truly desires to serve You. I praise God for my marriage. We are blessed.
Day #9: The fact that I had to turn down the volume of the podcast (from last weekend’s sermon) because I could not listen to the detailed medical information of what Jesus went through with death on the cross is a sole reminder of what Jesus did for me, for my sins. Jesus took my place; paid a debt He did not owe, a dead I could not pay. We are blessed.
Day #10: I am so thankful for the look I receive each time I go to get Peanut out of his crib. I praise God for the smile and adoration that Peanut gives me every time. We are blessed.
Day #11: I thank God for the men, women, and families who have sacrificed their peaceful lives to give me freedom that I can choose the job I desire, worship the Lord of Lords with other believers, and vote my convictions. We are blessed.
Day #12: Thank you God for girlfriends who get me. Those girls who I can be real with. I don’t have to carefully form each sentence and fear judgement. For those who love and encourage me to be the woman God designed me to be. We are blessed.
Day #13: I thank God for the Focus on the Family program Adventures in Odyssey that helps me wade through stacks of emails, write curriculum, and create crafts and activities each day during my “work” time. I am thankful that my kiddos have started learning Biblical truths from listening as well. We are blessed.
Day #14: Praise God that I am able to hear the sound of raindrops hitting our windows. That I can see the snowflakes float down from the sky. That I can feel the warmth of the sun’s rays. That I can taste the mouthwatering flavor of fresh baked cookies. That I can drink in the smell of a freshly opened flower. We are blessed.
Day #15: I have never once wondered where I was going to get money to put food on our table. Never once have I had to put my kids to bed hungry. Not all mommies can say this. We are blessed.
Day #16: Today is Peanut’s 1st birthday. Oh where has the time gone? I praise God for Baby #4 and all of the ways God has and is going to use him to further the Kingdom for Christ. We are blessed.
Day #17: I praise God for Sweet Pea. For her desire to be a mommy, wife, and teacher someday. For her one-dimpled smile and helpful attitude. How she mommies her brothers with such gentleness. That she is not just my daughter but my sister-in-Christ. We are blessed.
Day #18: I praise God that my family loves to be together. We make memories and continue traditions. Sometimes there are tears of grief but always laughter about days gone by. We work and play side by side. We have countdowns until the next time we can get together. Even though my husband and I have created a home for ourselves and our children, I love to return “home” for the holidays. In essence, I have two homes. We are blessed.
Day #19: Little Man. He can drive me insane with his antics almost as fast as he can melt my heart with his slobbery kisses. God is going to do great things with this little boy, and I am humbled to be called him mommy. Praise God for the impact that he has made on people already and for the change for Christ that he is going to stir in peoples’ lives in the future. We are blessed.
Day #20: Our church home. Wow! God has greatly blessed us with a body of believes who encourage, strengthen, and love on our family. We continue to be spurred to dig deeper into the Word to better know our Savior and King. We are blessed.
Day #21: I praise God that He uses cracked pots. That I am able to be the vessel to teach parents, grandparents, and preschool workers how to lay a solid Biblical and educational foundation in the hearts and lives of their kiddos. I praise God for ABCJesusLovesMe.com and this blog. God is doing amazing things to further the Kingdom. I am so thankful that I get to be part of His ministry. We are blessed.
Day #22: Grace, grace. God’s grace. Grace that is greater than all our sins. We are blessed.
Day #23: It took 10 years before I could say, “God’s will in my life.” Because the past ten years showed me that sometimes God’s will is excruciating and I wasn’t sure I was willing to go through the pain again if He chose it. But, I thank God that He patiently held my hand while I learned to trust Him. I am not able to say that I would have chosen His path. But, praise God that through these trials, I can stand taller and stronger knowing that God loves and cares for me and truly knows what is best to further His Kingdom. We are blessed.
Day #24: I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:3-6 We are blessed.
What a great idea. My husband also gets up really early to get his work day done earlier so he has more time with the family in the evenings. What a blessing that is for sure!
This is an awesome idea. especially leading up to thanksgiving, but I think sometimes it just reminds us of our blessings that we tend to over look in the daily grind.
Great idea. I'm in. 🙂