Weekly Impressions - Testimony

In light of my recent pains, and the realization that my arms were beginning to feel numb, I paid a visit to Jorge, My Massage Therapist, at Art of Touch today.  God used him in a mighty way (whether or not he knows it) and I walked out with much more feeling in my arms than when I went in.  I hadn’t realized how much feeling I had lost, and am exceedingly thankful that the Lord revealed the issue to him and used him to help correct it. 

(Apparently, the bones in my neck are bearing down on a particular nerve, which causes numbness in my arms - primarily my left.  I was amazed as my arm went through various stages of returning to normal feeling.  I still have a bit of numbness left - and so, plan to see him next week - but it's a far cry from what it had been. )

I'm not very good at finding an opening for sharing the Lord in a conversation that doesn't already include Him.  In my attempts to be more intentional in my walk with God, I've been analyzing my conversations to find an appropriate way to bring Him in, if possible.  I thought about my conversation with Jorge during the visit, in which he remarked about my pain tolerance (high).  I didn't find the opening until after I left Art of Touch, but I thought I'd share, as it is truly a part of my testimony. 

The pain that I deal with is a pretty constant pain, and a bit dull.  I find it a little easier to deal with sharper pain, as there's a certain way to diffuse it some by spreading or redirecting my focus.  I can do the same thing with constant pain, but it gets harder to redirect my focus as time goes on.   Sometimes the days don't matter as much as the minutes.  I need something to focus on that is greater than the pain.  

The easiest way to do that, I have found, is to be thankful for what God has given me.  You might ask how I could be thankful when He has chosen not to heal me, and to allow this suffering in my life.  My answer lies in Romans 8:28-30:  

"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.  For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified."  

God causes all things to work together for the good of His children.  He works toward the purpose of making His children more like Christ, and in so doing, He brings glory not only to Himself, but also to those same children. 

If God causes all things to work together for the good of His children, then nothing is beyond His control, which means that my pain is a result of His love.  Before you think that's sadistic, consider the pain that a doctor must put a patient through to set a broken bone.  Consider the drama that a small child endures when he or she doesn't want to eat vegetables and the parent has to make him or her so that he or she stays healthy.  It matters so much to the child in that moment, and he or she may very well question the parent's motives during that time.  Yet the doctor or parent has what's best for the patient or child in mind.

God loves me so much that He allows me to undergo pain for my good and for the good of His children.  He is Teaching me how to become more like Christ through my pain, and also producing a testimony in me of His glory that will encourage others of His children.  Certainly, the pain is bad, but God is so much bigger than my pain.  This pain will end, and in the light of eternity, even my life is fleeting.

So I thank the Lord that He loves me enough to do the hard things.  I thank Him for His Love and His Grace, and as I thank Him, my focus is naturally drawn from my pain onto Him, thereby making the pain easier (which may be what He is teaching me), and filling my life with more joy.  God, and a life led pursuing Him, is Joy.

How can I keep from singing?

Help

Today was a busy day at work.  We had a memorial service for which we had three or four days’ notice, our children had an outreach event, I had the bulletin to create for Sunday’s service, and we had several more phone calls than usual, as well as a few visits from people for various reasons.  I wasn’t worried about it, but I had known ahead of time that it would be a full day.

Not too far into it, my grandma called and asked if I would like to go out for lunch.  She happened to be in town and realized that it was lunch time, and spontaneously decided to see if I’d like to go with her.  Who could turn that down?  

I knew it wouldn’t take more than my allotted lunch time, so I enjoyed a brief outing with her.  When we returned, she began to get an inkling of the load of work I had for the day, and offered to help.  Now who could turn that down?

I had originally thought that I would have enough time to get everything done myself, but as the day progressed - and more interruptions and tasks needed to be performed - I began to realize that I would have had to stay pretty late if she hadn’t stayed and helped me.  The way the Lord works just makes me smile.

I am thankful for the help that the Lord knew I needed and provided for me in an impromptu visit from my grandma today.  A pleasant surprise and a loving embrace from my Savior all in one package.  Isn’t the Lord good?

Fans

Fans are a rather integral part of our family’s life.  We use one in our son’s room to provide white noise for him to go to sleep (and to cover the background noise of the grownups that are still up).  We duplicate that use in our room, as we also enjoy the white noise to go to sleep to.  Fans also help save our Air Conditioning, as well as being a part of our air conditioning.  They are a useful and widely used tool.

My son loves them - especially ceiling fans, which we don’t have.  He whispers, “FA!” quite emphatically along with a pointed finger every time he sees one.  Just imagine the ceiling fan section at Lowe’s... they carpet about two rows of the ceiling (so the block is about four fans wide).  No matter where we are in the store, he always seems to gravitate toward that section.

I am thankful for God’s provision of fans, for the many uses that they have, and for the wonder that they evoke in my son.  

The God of All Comfort

It’s been a difficult few days with my fibromyalgia.  The pain is greater and I can feel my pain tolerance waning.  We have been studying 2 Corinthians in my ladies’ Bible Study, and in it, Paul names God as the God of all comfort.

The interesting thing about the word comfort, is that in the original greek, the word referred to coming alongside.  It isn’t the sort of comfy feeling you get when you snuggle with a blanket and hot cocoa, it’s the comfort of God Himself coming alongside you in your suffering.  In His Love, mercy, and Grace, He offers His Divine Power for us to draw upon.

That doesn’t always mean that He’ll take the pain away.  Though I pray for His healing, I know that He has a purpose for the pain that I feel:  the good of His children, and His glory.  Knowing that brings comfort, too.

God is right beside me through this pain.  He even knows what it feels like, and would never leave me to handle it alone.  I am so thankful for the comfort that God gives to His children.

The Reality of Truth

This one is a bit difficult to explain, but I’ll do my best.  When I think of faith in God, and I consider a godly life, I have an ethereal idea of what that looks like.  It seems a bit romantic, perhaps, in the emotions that surround it.  Less so in the love sense and more so in the story sense.  It’s surreal.

I don’t really want to live a life in the surreal, and that is actually a fair struggle in my spiritual walk.  Yet, no matter how surreal it seems, when I actually walk in the reality of God’s Truth, there’s nothing surreal about it.  It is fully alive, tangible, and that moment feels as though it is the most real moment of my life.  God’s truth is reality.

I am thankful that living a godly life isn’t like some surreal story; that I don’t have to be someone I’m not, and that His people are just like me.  I thank God for the reality of His truth.  May I learn each day how to better live in that truth.

Worth

I am thankful that my worth is not based on anything but God, the Unchangeable One.  Thus, nothing can change my worth.  When I place my hope in anything (which most often manifests in my life as attempting to draw worth from accomplishment) except God Himself, I set myself up for failure and disappointment.  

I am thankful that God has made me more and more aware of how I attempt to derive worth.  He has shown me that Hope is a key factor of my worth.  It is so easy to place hope in something even as simple as a video game.  I don’t really notice unless I do poorly, and then find myself beyond disappointed.  On the flip side, when I have my hope in God, whether I’m doing well or poorly doesn’t affect me beyond disappointment - and sometimes I won’t even be disappointed.

How does one keep hope on Him instead of on whatever one may be doing at the moment?  One trains to focus on Him.  Instead of allowing my hope to fall wherever it will, I must be intentional.  It is vital to pray, set reminders of Him around me, practice thankfulness and humility, serve others, and take my thoughts captive.  This is the training of a warrior of God, and without it, we lose our effectiveness.

I am thankful for God’s revelation of the link between hope and worth, and that God loves me whether or not I am successful, no matter the mistakes I make, and no matter my sins against Him.  He is always ready to lead me, and He always walks beside me.

Weekly Impressions - Disciplines

I am struck again by the necessity and usefulness of being Intentional in my walk with God.  (A recent example of this is displayed in my post Thankfulness.)  If I do not intentionally “...take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ...” (2 Corinthians 10:5), then am I truly following Christ?  Being a follower of Christ is not the sort of thing that one can place in a box of time and do only during that time.  It is a way of life.

God built several things into the Jews’ way of life in Deuteronomy and Numbers.  One such thing was “...they shall make for themselves tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and... they shall put on the tassel of each corner a cord of blue.  It shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the Lord, so as to do them and not follow after your own heart and your own eyes... so that you may remember to do all My commandments and be holy to your God.  I am the Lord your God[.]”  (Numbers 15:38b-41a)

When I read this years ago, reminders of God were a bit of a new concept to me, and I actually made myself a blue tassel that I put on my desk at work.  This is but one example of the reminders that God specifically commanded the Jews to have of Him.  There were a myriad of them!  Reminders of God are important.

I need to brainstorm more ways that I can be intentional in my walk with Him.  I think, in fact, that this brainstorm should be a regular action, so that as I grow, I can incorporate more things in my life to help me stay focused on Him at all times.  Those “disciplines,” if you will, should represent my growth, and help perpetuate more growth in the future.

Two of my “disciplines” are my quiet time and this blog.  Both are pretty daily, and a good way to help me focus on Him.  During my walk around the lake at lunch on work days, I often pray.  I think that I will be more intentional about making it a designated prayer time.  Praying before a meal is another example.  It doesn’t necessarily have to be big, just something that helps to draw focus back to God - like a blue tassel in a place that is often seen.

What “disciplines” do you have?  What might you want to add?

Faith Stories

I heard a story today about a man’s granddaughter who had received a fourth degree burn on her side.  If you aren’t sure what that means, fourth degree is when the skin is gone and the muscle beneath is also seared away.  Essentially, she had a hole in her side.  She was looking at multiple surgeries, at the end of which she still wouldn’t have full functionality.

Well this little girl believed in Jesus Christ, and she prayed.  Less than a week after she had received the burn, she was going to see the doctor who would determine the next step.  The nurse who had been tending her took her bandages off... to discover a whole side - no hole, the skin was complete, and there was no scarring.  In her 25 years of working in the burn victim unit, she had never seen this.  It was impossible.

But not for God.

I love getting to hear real-life faith stories like that.  Those kinds of stories encourage those of us who follow God.  It causes us to turn our minds upon Him and to praise Him for what He has done.  I am thankful that God works miracles in the lives of His children, and I am thankful that those miracles get shared with other believers, so that we might share in their joy.

To God be the glory!

Thankfulness

Our son was having a rather difficult time getting to sleep tonight, so I used the good ‘ol sway-bounce-pat routine.  The trouble is, my fibromyalgia has been flaring this past week, and my knees especially ache quite a bit.  The sway-bounce-pat routine did not help.  

In light of my self-focus the day before, I tried to take my focus off of myself and my pain, and instead sought what I should focus on.  I knew that in this particular situation - where I had to pass the time in my mind through the pain as I comforted my son to sleep - thankfulness would be the best solution.

So I started thanking the Lord.  I thanked Him for the very situation that I was in, for the pain, for the opportunity to hold my son, and for the exercise in discipline that this situation was for me.  I didn’t have a real idea of why He had allowed this situation or circumstance in my life today, but I realized that I didn’t need to.  I could be thankful for the situation simply because I knew that God was using it for the good of His children, whatever that good may be.

It helped tremendously.  My attitude improved considerably, and, while it wasn’t the easiest thing to continue my focus on being thankful, I could see the immediate benefit, which helped to spur me on in my endeavor.  I am thankful that the Lord has taught me to seek thankfulness to Him, thereby improving not only my mood, but also my ability to bring Him glory.  I pray that I learn more and more how to continuously praise Him in thankfulness - throughout my days.

League of Legends

I mentioned League of Legends before in LAN Parties.  It’s a free-to-play online game that’s a bit of a cross between a shooter and a tower defense game (played with 3 or 5 people on 2 opposing teams).  It can be pretty fun - especially with friends.

My day was a bit frustrating with my little one, and I found myself edgy and irritable at the end of it... to call a spade a spade, I was rather self-focused.  What did I turn to?  Well... Distraction.  It isn’t always the best option, but it is an option.  LoL (for short) can be pretty frustrating with the wrong crowd, so I enlisted a good friend to play with.  As it happened, I ended up playing a support role in both rounds that we played, which was really quite perfect, as it helped me to think about how I could help my friend do well, which helped shift my focus off of myself.  In truth, it’s not a big shift, but it was the start I needed.

I am thankful that God used League of Legends to help shift my focus off of myself and bring it to bear on others.  Now, I think my feelings have subsided to the point that I can focus on reading my Bible, and thus listen to what God has to say and get my focus back where it should truly be.  Thank You, Lord, for how You guide us back to You.

Bible Studies

I haven’t had the opportunity to attend a Ladies’ Bible Study since my son was born.  I am incredibly thankful to be able to participate in that fellowship, biblical discussion, and edification of one another again.  A good Bible Study truly fills a spiritual need in my life.

I am thankful for the group of ladies that I can join once a week and whom I can learn from, encourage, lift up in prayer, and otherwise be a sister in Christ to.  I look forward to God’s work in our lives.

Thermometers

Our Son is now 19 months old.  He doesn’t have a lot of words down, though he has his own version of a fair number of signs.  He cannot, however, communicate to us clearly yet.  We have to determine when he isn’t feeling well - which may or may not be clear.

This past Sunday, he was pretty clingy, and didn’t pass Grandma’s “kiss test.”  (This is a test in which she kisses his forehead, and the temperature feels warmer than normal.)  So we pulled out the thermometer (one of those nifty ones that you swipe across the forehead) and checked his temperature.  Sure enough, he had a fever.  My poor little man is a little under the weather.

I am thankful, though, that we had a thermometer with which we could obtain a quantified observation to reach a definitive conclusion.  Without those types of facts, I’m much more prone to worry and anxiety.  The fact that he has a fever calls for certain steps, like Tylenol to help reduce it, drinking cold milk, a bath in tepid water if necessary.  Not knowing if those steps needed to be performed, however, would drive me to distraction.

I am thankful that God has provided thermometers as a way in which I can obtain the information necessary to derive a definite answer to the question of whether or not my son has a fever.

Weekly Impressions - Thank You, Lord

Dear Lord,

I just want to thank You for all that You are doing in my life and in the lives of others.  Help me to be more cognizant of even a tiny portion of those things, so that I might live constantly in the knowledge of You.  When I look at the world, may I always see You, Your glory, and Your Victory.  

Lord, help me to be a magnifying glass of Your works.  May my life be ever and only a  testimony of You.  Help me to be intentional in following You as a disciple.  Help me to keep my focus staid upon You, so that my life is simply an overflow of Your goodness and mercy and grace.

Thank You for Your leading.  Thank You for Your Love, Grace, mercy, and for redeeming me from my sin.  Thank You for Keeping My Soul.  Thank You for the material things that You give us like Laptops and Disposable Diapers and Camelbaks.  Thank You for the Truth and Wisdom that You give us to govern the other things that You have entrusted to us, and to reveal that truth and wisdom to others.

Thank You for the work that You do in our hearts.  May we, Your children, rise up and praise You.

In Jesus’ Risen Name,
Amen.

Snoods

Up until about three years ago, I had always kept long hair - at least past my shoulder blades.  I cut it for various reasons, but decided to grow it back this year.  Prior to the big cut, my grandma had crocheted me an array of snoods.  

If you’ve never heard of a snood, it’s like a hairnet, often with beads (there are actually two types - you can read about it here).  Snoods were often worn in the renaissance period.  Most of the snoods that my grandma made cover just the pony tail instead of the whole head.  I enjoyed wearing these, as they were a practical, yet different way to keep my hair back.  When I cut my hair, there wasn’t enough to fill out the snoods she had made for my long hair, so I wasn’t able to wear them for awhile.

Today, my family joined a few others to go for a picnic and then a jeep ride.  Having been on a jeep ride before, I knew there would be a significant amount of wind tangling my hair, the length of which has just reached the bottom of my shoulder blades.  Wind makes the worst kind of tangles:  dry and brittle.  I realized with delight that my hair was long enough to fit into one of the whole hair snoods, which would keep all of my hair together without letting the wind pick out pieces to tangle.

It worked like a charm!  I am glad that the Lord gave my grandma her creative talent, and that through that, He provided me with an easy means to keep my hair from becoming a rat’s nest, which may very well have brought up the wish of cutting my hair again!

Time

What is your idea of heaven?  Many people think of heaven as a place that they will be on constant vacation.  I disagree with that - unless you define vacation as the joy of serving the Lord.  I believe that we will still have tasks given to us by God, that we will serve one another, and that (much like now) our service of Him will bring Him glory in a myriad of ways.  I imagine that there will be “times” by which we should accomplish certain things.  I don’t have a great grasp on exactly what all that will look like, but that’s my idea of heaven and eternity.

I enjoy considering eternity, and what time must look like to God in light of the idea that God exists outside of time (the fourth dimension).  The classic hypothetical perspective of the idea is that we can’t understand God in the fourth dimension in the same way that a two-dimensional character can’t understand how we exist in the third dimension.  It’s a diverting exercise.

As I tried to wrap my mind around existing outside of time, I wondered what time would be like for us in our resurrected form in eternity.  Would it be important?  The second dimension is still an important dimension to us in the third, and God created the fourth dimension for a reason.  So time must be important.  I can imagine, though, that having so much time, would make it far less of a commodity (and priority) than it is for us as we exist inside it.  Time is incredibly valuable here.

This thought made me thankful that I exist inside of time now, so that I can learn (and discipline myself) to use it well.  Not that I won’t necessarily use it well in eternity.  I just think that it’s a privilege to be able to obtain the discipline of time-management now, while it “counts.”  Then, in eternity, I will have a jump-start, so-to-speak, on paying attention to when things need to be done.

Perhaps I am still too caught within the perception of time in that thinking, but that’s about as far as I can get.  Beyond that, I will simply trust in God, “not lean on [my] own understanding...” (Proverbs 3:5b), and “...in everything give thanks...” (Thessalonians 5:18)  I will falter and fail at times, but that is why God has given us Grace.  His grace is sufficient for me (2 Corinthians 12:9a).  In fact, it’s overwhelming.

Traction Tables

If you’ve never heard of a traction table, it’s a machine you will often find at a chiropractor’s office.  You lie on the table and it has a series of three rollers that move from your hips toward your neck in succession to help offset the downward pull of gravity on your spine.  It feels quite nice, and usually helps my body for the rest of the day.

Today, after my chiropractic adjustment, I even felt my blood flow improve a little while on the traction table.  The rollers' action feel so nice, and it's mentally soothing to know that my body is receiving regenerative care.  It can be hard sometimes to not give in to the angst produced by the usual pain of fibromyalgia, and thus think that my body is just constantly degenerating.  Doing good things for my body can help to alleviate that battle.

I am thankful that God gave me the opportunity to use a traction table today, and for the good that it did my body.  I pray for the day when God will heal my body - whether He chooses to use “modern medicine,” a miracle, or my physical death and “reincarnation” into a new eternal body.  His timing is perfect, and I am thankful that His timing for today included an experience of a little alleviation.  To God be the glory.

Amazon.com

When a friend of mine has something that I decide to get for myself, I often run into the issue of not being able to find the item for purchase.  Stores cycle their inventory, and don’t carry it anymore - even online.  It is in these instances that I am rather thankful for Amazon.com, because more often than not, a search will reveal the sought item.

I love it because the items that I usually go out of my way to find are those that will make life a bit easier.  I’m not really one to buy clothes or figurines that someone else has - but hangers that will store your clothes in a smaller space and make the clothes more visible at-a-glance?  Definitely.

So I am thankful for Amazon.com, and how God uses it in my life as a means to make life a little easier... or at least more organized.

Knitting Patterns

I have been working on a knitted sweater for about eight months now, and am almost finished.  While I do come up with my own knitting designs, I usually like to start with someone’s honest-to-goodness pattern.  I follow it to a tee and try to understand the reasoning for doing it the way that they did, so that when I vary it, I don’t make a huge mistake.  I benefit greatly from the tips, tricks, and instructions noted in knitting patterns, and am thankful for the knowledge.  For this sweater, I am in the process of following the pattern precisely, and it makes for a beautiful sweater (I’m nearly done)!

I find myself comparing a knitting pattern loosely with the Bible.  The Bible is, after a fashion, a pattern for us to follow in life.  We wouldn’t want to pattern our lives exactly like all of those in it - some of the people are more examples of what not to do, and how God prevails despite their sin.  There are also those, like Paul, who we should pattern our lives after.  Not precisely, though, I would argue, as God uses each of us and our talents according to where He has us.  I’m certainly not in the position that Paul was in:  establishing the church during the Roman empire.  I am, however, a follower of Christ, and the Bible has plenty of tips, tricks, and instructions on the subject (or worldview, really; it affects everything).

I am thankful for knitting patterns, and how we can use them to pass on knowledge to fellow knitters.  I am also thankful that God gave us a pattern (if you will) to follow in the Bible, which leads us to “...everything pertaining to life and godliness through a true knowledge of Him who called us[.]”

Weekly Impressions - Comrades-in-Arms

One of the things that God has taught me in the past is that I need to be intentional about how I think about my husband.  If I am constantly thinking about his faults and the parts about him that annoy or upset me, then I am shooting both of us in the foot.  It’s highly important to intentionally focus on what I am thankful for in him, the little things that he does for me, and the parts of our marriage that I enjoy.

I have been wrestling with my thought life in my marriage lately.  It’s been hard not to take special note of the things that he isn’t doing right rather than the things that he is doing right.  I battled with this for about a month before I decided that either there was a real issue that needed to be dealt with between us, or I needed some help.

God works in such wondrous ways.  I brought up the main issue that had been bothering me with my husband.  We talked about it a bit, but weren’t really sure what to do about it, so we brought it before our Biblical Counselor.  I am so thankful for our biblical counselor.  He was able to identify the heart issues in each of us, to give us some good advice, and to show us how to work on it for the future.

Since that meeting, I have barely struggled with focusing on the bad parts of our marriage at all.  I love it when God reaches down and uses someone else to gently bring my perspective around.  I am so thankful for that Grace and mercy.

It is good to pray and to battle against my sin with the Lord, but I think I waited too long before seeking His help in a different form.  I need to be more cognizant of when I need to ask for help from my comrades-in-arms.  I’ve never been very good at it, but by God’s grace, I am improving.  My brothers and sisters in Christ are amidst the battle with me and my husband, and we are here to help each other in the battle.

Are you struggling with something right now?  Is it time to ask a comrade-in-arms?

Singing

I will never get tired of singing as life continues.  That resonance in my throat and chest just feels right.  I love listening to singing, trying to determine how someone else manipulated their voice to get the sound they want, harmonizing with others through singing, and I love being able to lift it to the Lord as an offering and bring Him glory.  I don’t think that there’s anything that I don’t love about singing.

I thank the Lord for singing, for the fulfillment that it gives me, but also for the encouragement that it can be for others.  It can brighten a person’s day, or help keep it from going sour.  It can bring a person’s perspective around as you sing or listen to the words.  It can help people exercise as they keep with the beat.  I think God uses singing in just about any situation.

I thank the Lord for this gift, and I pray that I never lose the perspective that my voice is one of His tools.

My Husband's Embrace

When encircled by my husband’s arms, I am so thankful for God’s gift to me of my husband.  His embrace induces a feeling of comfort, love, and safety for this moment while I’m held, that can’t seem to be duplicated any other way.  I don’t really want him to let go, because each moment becomes this moment, during which I’m soaking up his embrace and basking in the feelings.  God’s love seems so real - perhaps most real - in that moment.

God shows His love for me through His gifts, and my husband is not among the least, but among the very best of His gifts.  A husband ranks just under God’s salvation, mercy, Grace, Hope, and Love, and is even a conduit of those, except for salvation (that’s a bit of a one-time deal that only Jesus could carry out).  

When I’m struggling, I’ll sometimes ask my husband to hold me.  It’s a physical reminder that can help calm roiling feelings and remind me of the perspective that I ought to have:

God is in control... for our good and His glory... and He is all-powerful to accomplish His will.  Nothing can happen without His permission, and He will lead me through whatever trials He allows into my life.  I cannot escape...

His goodness
His love
His discipline
His mercy
His hope

...I cannot escape Him.  And why would I want to in this moment of love?  Each moment, God is holding me just like my husband’s embrace.

Dinner with Friends

We enjoyed a fabulous dinner and evening with another couple who are good friends of ours.  The food was delicious, the fellowship fantastic, and we even went out for a walk upon which our son enjoyed playing with their kids at a neighborhood playground.  It is so good to be able to spend time with another family - especially when there’s good food involved!  

Setting aside a night for dinner with friends is one of the best ways that we’ve been able to find to participate in another family’s fellowship.  So many other events just seem to create more obstacles, but dinner is a great way to relax - whether you’re baking or eating.  God has truly blessed us in the fellowship that He has granted us, and I am so thankful for dinner with friends.

Hearing

I am thankful that God gave us hearing.  Music is the first reason that comes to mind - with its harmony, lyric, and flow - but it certainly isn’t the last.  The sound of my son’s belly laugh when my husband plays with him; the little snorts and growls my dog used to make as she talked to us; my husband’s voice on the phone; the doorbell when we’ve been excitedly waiting for a friend’s visit.  These are all reasons that I am thankful for hearing.  

Of course, there are noises that are not so nice, as well - especially when we humans are in the midst of expressing our sin to one another.  “The tongue is a fire...” as the Bible says in James 3:6a.  Yet I am glad that God is with us in every step of life - through mountain highs and valley sorrows.  Through it all, He helps us to become more like His Son each day.  I am thankful that hearing is one of the tools that He uses.

Church Gatherings

I am so privileged to be a member of our Church.  The people are so real, caring, and God-seeking that He simply flows through them.  Each time I join the people at a gathering for some sort of church function, I come away encouraged and blessed.  I may tend to administrative needs, but the people of the church tend me and my family.

The people tend my son in childcare and in helping entertain him as I chase him around the grounds.  They tend my husband and me with encouragement in Christ and sound teaching.  They tend our family with their fellowship with us, and they even thank my husband and I for the work that we do.

I am thankful that church gatherings provide another “excuse” for our church family to be together.  God blesses us through them (both the people and the gathering) every time.

Weekly Impressions - Journaling

I find that when God tells me things during the week, by the time I go to write about them, I’ve lost what it was He said.  Has God ever told you something that you forgot?  I’d check your pulse if you haven’t.  He has a lot to say sometimes.

I really need to put a pen in my nightstand so that I can start using the journal that’s next to my bed for notes.  The truth is, the information wouldn’t only be useful to blog about later; I could really stand to remember some of the things that He’s revealed to me.  The more I think about them, the more likely I am to remember them - especially during the time(s) to which they apply (if that time isn’t ever-present).  So I’ve determined to be more intentional about writing down what God shares with me.

In fact, I think I’ll keep a journal in my backpack, too, for quick reference during the day.  If you don’t already do this sort of thing, I would greatly encourage you to join me.  I’m already excited about what God will do through it.  May He bless us as we seek Him.