A Clean House

My husband is on his three week break between summer school and the fall semester.  He decided to stay home alone with the kiddo today, and see how things went.  He FaceTimed me a couple times so that my nearly two-year-old could see me, and I heard tell of the difficulty to get things done while he watched him.  This, I most definitely understood.

After work, I filled my gas tank, picked up some groceries and came straight home (a rare occurrence, mind you).  When I walked in the door, I found that my husband had cleaned the carpet and the couch, washed the dishes, and now planned on making dinner.  I could get used to this.  

If that’s his idea of not being able to get anything done, I wonder what it must look like to get things done.  Maybe my expectations have just lowered since discovering first-hand what it is to take care of a small child and still try to get other things done.  I admit, I don’t think I’d have ever tried to clean the carpet with the little man up and about.

To come home and find all of that done was quite a blessing to me, and I am thankful for the work my husband put in to present me with a clean house.  We will be hosting my birthday party soon, and having the carpet cleaned was something that I had desired, but hadn’t dared hope to achieve.  Yes, my sweetie deserves a shout-out for having achieved it while our son was up and running around.  I will certainly enjoy my clean house!

I praise the Lord for my husband’s servant heart, and I pray that I might be able to be as much a blessing to him as he is to me. 

Celtic Music

A good fiddle bowing playfully across the scales in celtic fashion can nearly always lift my mood, or help me come back to reality.  Well... unless I get lost in the celtic world... which is a fun place to be, by the way.  There’s something about that rhythmic dancing melody that puts a smile on my face... often with a tint of mischief.  (Mischievous energy can be put to good use, mind you.)

I still don’t know how it is that Music carries our souls along with it, but I tell you it does.  I love the more melancholy celtic music, too, and that definitely takes me to the celtic realm with my own little twist of fancy.  As I tried to turn my thoughts tonight from the anime I had been watching to focus on bringing a thankful thing to the Lord, I found that a playful celtic fiddle was just the ticket.

I thank the Lord for celtic music, that its melodies and harmonies resonate with me, and that He has shown me how to use that to bring my focus to bear upon Him.  I pray that He teaches me to use more and more of the normal things in my life to do just that:  bring my focus to bear upon my Lord.  His glory is evident in them; if only I can see it.  I pray for the clarity of vision through His eyes.

Wi-Fi

I love the portability and quick access of a laptop.  Yet it’s splendor is not truly complete without a wi-fi connection.  Such an increase in mobility grants the precarious placement of said laptop.  Just kidding... sort of.

All joking aside, I certainly enjoy the luxury of wi-fi.  No matter where I am in the house (yes, I do mean the bathroom), I can still work on my blog, access Biblegateway.com, and check up on how everyone is doing on social media.  That alone can increase my productivity, but it’s nice to be able to move easily depending upon my mood.

For example, I often enjoy sitting on my bed with a couple pillows and a lit candle.  However, if it’s day, I like to sit in the living room at the table or on the couch in enjoyment of the light.  Other times, I like the ambience - the almost story-like quiet - of my office/spare bedroom.  Even a soak in the bathtub on occasion, though that certainly requires a measure of caution.

I thank the Lord that we have wi-fi; for the available change in ambience, the convenience, and the productivity for which I can employ it.  As I strive to increase my Intentionality, I work to implement the use of my wi-fi and internet as a tool to focus more often on God, and less often on entertainment.  The more areas in which I can insert the discipline of God-centered focus, the better - and God is revealing the realm of possibilities to my mind.  I thank Him for the revelation, and pray that I remain steadfast.

Weekly Impressions - Love is Nigh

There’s a poem I wrote a few years ago that is resonating in my mind tonight.  It’s called “Love is Nigh” and I think that it sums up my feelings for God at this moment.

Rejoice, oh my soul,
For Love is nigh –
His gaze is ever upon me.

Rejoice, oh my soul,
For Love is nigh –
Cast away your sorrow and worry.

Rejoice, oh my soul,
For Love is nigh –
His light sears through my darkness.

Rejoice, oh my soul,
For Love is nigh –
His presence reassures my soul.

Rejoice, oh my soul,
For Love is nigh –
His grace and mercy surround me.

Rejoice, oh my soul,
For Love is nigh –
His life restores my own.

Rejoice, oh my soul,
For Love is nigh –
‘Tis Christ: my Light and my Life.

He is all.  All that I need; all that I could want; all that I should live for.  “...Christ is all, and in all.” (Colossians 3:11c)  His gaze is ever upon me, so I need not worry.  He lights my path and the darkness that lurks in my heart; that light, though sometimes painful, is reassuring.  In His mercy, He gives me grace in the midst of my dark sin and restores life and freedom to my soul.  He is the very thing that gives me true life.  He Loves me.

I can never thank Him enough for that love, and I rejoice in the knowledge of His presence.  He is always near.  He will never leave, nor forsake, His children.  May we revel in that glory.

Flexibility

My husband has been helping me with technical issues at work, as well as the purchase of a new computer.  With recent issues and circumstances, we determined that it was best to move ahead with the purchase as soon as we could.  There are a number of things to consider in our setup, and we would also be switching from a PC to a Mac, so we needed some time to determine what all was needed.

I asked if it was alright if I stayed home with my husband for awhile during work hours so that we could work out everything we'd need, along with a quote.  The answer?  Yes!  

One thing that I am definitely thankful for in the people that I work with is their flexibility.  The job itself has a measure of flexibility, too, which is rather nice.  To make a long story short, numerous of the church staff, elders, and volunteers were flexible with me today, and we were actually able to make the purchase today!  I thought that was quite the feat.

Their flexibility reminds me that God often uses circumstances that I need to be flexible within.  He will put that flexibility to good use.  For instance, to always be ready to witness and to be willing to take the time away from whatever I may have been doing at that moment.  It isn’t always that overt, either.  To open the door for someone; to offer a smile to a stranger; to take the time to talk to that person who keeps talking because they just don’t want to be alone, or are really struggling with something.  Or even to sign a check for the church secretary.

God is flexible with me - as evidenced by His grace.  I need to be flexible for God.  May I always be ready.

Backup & Restore

I didn’t know this, but our phone system at work had a couple of hard drives running it.  I found this out today, because they fried, leaving us without voicemail.  I just love how God works; this happened literally as the workers were switching over our phone service to a new company, who just happens to offer us voicemail features.  If there was ever a time for it to die, the time was today.

Since the hard drives blew (not literally), we also lost all of the memory and settings in our phone system.  That, however, was remedied by an apparent backup and restore function (I know nothing of what I speak, only what the phone specialist told me).  So, instead of losing everything, we only lost voicemail.

So I am thankful for backup and restore functionality, that God prevented a serious headache through its use.  We had purchased the phone system second-hand, and it has been around for 10 years, so the fact that God allowed a feature - especially one that we would receive from elsewhere - to die today was truly a portrayal of His orchestration.  Thank the Lord!

Shipping

We don’t get to the store very often; it doesn’t really fit into our schedule.  This makes shopping online and having items shipped a very convenient alternative for us - assuming it’s free, of course.  I am also glad that the online purchase makes checking the customer reviews, etc. easy instead of blindly choosing in the store.  We just purchased a new vacuum this way.

I am thankful that shipping is so prevalent today, as it makes many items more easily obtained.  It also encourages me to purchase items online, where it is fast and easy to research a frugal option.  Shipping is one way that the Lord has provided for our family to function efficiently.

Scissors

I spilled wax on my latest knitting project (as you may remember from Candle Wicks).  The wax soaked into the yarn and dried, leaving a hardened mess.  The only ways I could think of to get the wax out were fairly impractical, so I decided to rip out what I was working on and cut out the wax parts, in order to save the yarn for smaller projects.  This required the use of scissors.

I planned to start the new project to rip out the knitting and save the yarn during the car ride into town.  There was just one problem... I didn’t have a pair of scissors with me.  I still haven’t purchased a pair for my knitting bag, and have felt the effects on several occasions.  I was glad for the use of my mother-in-law’s scissors later in the day to be able to attend to my “project” in the wake of my mini-disaster.

God truly helped me to have a calm, almost blessed, attitude about the whole wax mess, and to rest in the knowledge that it is part of God’s beneficial plan.  I am thankful for scissors, that, with them, I was able to save the unadulterated pieces of yarn.  Perhaps God has more useful - more beneficial - things in store for me to create from the pieces.

Birthday Money

I haven’t had my birthday just yet, but I’ve already been given a gift of a fair amount of money.  Contemplating just exactly what I want to get with that money has been quite enjoyable.  It’s that question of the right combination of what I really want, could (and would) use, and how far I make my dollar go.  I have narrowed my choices to three items:  a renaissance dress, a pair of sterling cuff earrings that look a bit elfin, or the yarn that I will need to knit the skirt that I bought a pattern for.

I am thankful for birthday money, that it’s a fun way to consider the best way to spend my money; I want to make the choice count.  I am also thankful that I can get something I would like that I would not otherwise have been able to.  I am glad that the Lord taught me (mostly through my parents) to spend my money wisely, and for the enjoyment of exercising that wisdom.  It reminds me of Proverbs 10:23:  “Doing wickedness is like sport to a fool, and so is wisdom to a man of understanding.”

I memorized this verse long ago in the hopes of being able to put it to use, in a search for wisdom.  It is fun to be able to see an example in my own life of enjoying wisdom (in this case, seen as what item would be not only desirable, but also practical and frugal) as a sport!

Weekly Impressions - Poor Choices

My main spiritual battle of late is focused around my thoughts about my marriage.  I find myself dwelling on all of the things that my husband didn’t do, or should have done, or could have done better.  It doesn’t make for a very pleasant thought life, and it’s draining on our marriage.  My main weapon in the battle?  Reading the Bible - especially with a focus on being thankful.

I realized that I had let myself get busy and neglect my daily Bible reading.  My thought life often degrades in the wake of that priority switch.  Psalm 100 and 103 have been very helpful to center my focus and thoughts upon God, and how grateful I am for the things that He has done for me.  God didn’t give me my husband so that I could gripe about him.  He gave him to me so that I could glorify God by coming alongside him to be his helper, and so that my husband could glorify God by coming alongside me to lead me closer to God.

The more I shift my focus off of dwelling on what I don’t have, onto dwelling on what God has given me, the richer my life has been.  In this way, God has been helping me to crawl out of the hole that I dug myself into, and into the light of His joy once again.  I thank the Lord for the Bible, and that it helps to strengthen our “...shield of faith with which [we] will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.”

Creativity

Creative nectars flow to
Reveal a world of
Endless possibilities in
Alternative forms to
Treat the mind and
Induce thought.
Vivid renderings of
Imagination coalesce in
Testament of the boundless thoughts of
Yahweh.

I am so thankful for creativity.  In it, God created the ability for variation without end:  He gave us an endless source of entertainment; an incredible teaching tool; His amazing, varied, and inexplicable creation all around us; the ability to express things that words cannot... the uses of creativity are as endless as its methods of implementation.  Creativity is, to me, one of the easiest ways to see the glory of God made manifest that I can call to mind in a tough moment.  I can grasp the concept of its immensity, its boundlessness - and God created it.  That means that He is even greater, even more boundless than creativity.

Certainly, creativity can be perverted to sinful use; lies and deception are the first things that come to mind.  Yet God is still sovereign, and “...causes all things to work together for good, to those who love God...” (Romans 8:28).  He is still greater than anything in or of this world.

So I strive to reveal that testimony of His glory in my own creativity.  I seek to share His world of wonder.  Can you see it?

Policies

When I hear the word “policy,” the first thing I think of is government red tape and its infamous notoriety for inefficiency.  Policies aren’t all bad, though.  For instance, at work, they are instituting policies for employee wages and benefits.  Previously, I had no idea what to expect, aside from a set hourly wage.  Now, not only have they decided to give us certain benefits, but they have laid out a predictable plan for what those benefits will look like in the future.

So, I am thankful for policies, that God moved the “bosses” to institute a few policies that take out some of the guess-work in their employees’ future planning and goal-setting.  May my stewardship of His gift honor Him.

Contentment

What is it to be content?  One definition is to be satisfied, not wishing for more.  It isn’t a bad description of the feeling, perhaps, but in Christ, I feel there is so much more.  Yes, I am satisfied, but, though I don’t wish for more, I certainly hope for more.  In fact, I have faith - I know - that more is coming.  My definition of contentment would be to be satisfied in the here and now because I know what He ultimately has in store for me:  an eternity with my Savior, and without sin.

My contentment doesn’t stem from a momentary satisfaction, like the fleeting moments of happiness that we have in this world, it stems from the satisfaction - the thankfulness - that I am a child of God, saved from the consequences of my sin by God’s grace through His Son, Jesus Christ.  The very thought is humbling, and that humbleness is the root of my contentment; I know that God can do all things far better than I can, and that He is taking care of me.  

I don’t have to worry.  I don’t have to be afraid.  God has me in His grip and will never let go.  So, whether with my Savior here on earth, or with my Savior in eternity, I am content.  I thank the Lord for the contentment that He so graciously and lovingly bestows upon His children.

Minecraft

I have mentioned before that I love video games.  One of the video games that I enjoy playing with my friends and family is Minecraft.  It’s a bit like virtual legos for adults, with some adventure play thrown in.  You can explore an infinite world; build whatever you can dream up (I heard of a 1-1 scale Star Trek Enterprise); progress through the different levels of technology; mine out structures and gather resources; farm and create hybrid plants; fight zombies and huge spiders... it’s a multi-faceted game.  The beauty of it is that it is still a simple game.  We play the heavily “modded” version (short for modifications, which really means that a lot has been added to the base game) of Tekkit Lite.

The thing that I most enjoy doing is exploring, finding an area where I want to make a base of operations, and then trying to make the base work both practically and aesthetically.  It’s even more fun when you play with others and work together to survive and create.  You get to help them with their projects and also receive help with your own.  I am thankful that God provided the money for us to purchase Minecraft, and for the fun that our family and friends have when we play it together.  There’s a little something for everyone in it, which makes it one of those few games that most everyone enjoys.

Candle Wicks

I sometimes enjoy writing my blog in my bed by the light of my computer and a Candle.  The candle I have used has a lot of life left in it, but the wick bent over and the flame was low, which meant next to no light.  This brought to light the meaning behind “trimming the wick” for me.  

So, feeling rather domestic, I trimmed the wick.  This worked great until the larger flame melted more wax off the sides, which raised the wax level.  There might have been enough wick left, but the top of the wick curled back down into the higher wax, which put out the flame.  I needed more wick or less wax.  More wax means longer life, so - again, feeling domestic - I created my own wick out of a napkin and rolled it around the existing wick to give it a foundation.

My new wick worked!  Until it melted a hole in the side of my candle and the wax fled through the exit to leak off the night stand and onto my knitting.  (Oops!  Note to self:  put a plate under your candle.  Side note:  Does anyone know how to remove wax from knitted clothing?)  I had come too far to stop now, so I used the warm wax to stop up the hole, and noticed that the wick was leaning a bit.

I used my barrette (the best and closest tool I could think of to use to accomplish all of this wick moving) to nudge my napkin wick upright, with the plan of letting the wax cool around it to help steady it before I lit it again.  However, the wick liked my barrette too much to let go, and suddenly my wick was in shambles.

I would not be thwarted so easily.  I rolled a new wick - improved, even, based on my last one.  I made it shorter and wider, so as to roll it more times.  This time, the candle worked beautifully, and I write this in its warm glow.

When I think of candles, I remember this portion of Jesus’ sermon on the mount:  “You are the light of the world.  A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.  Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16)

A candle (or lamp) needs care when its light has grown dim.  Sometimes, that care takes a bit of perseverance.  This light of Christ within me was meant to be shared, and if I let it grow dim, I limit how far I can reach (not to mention my poor example of the radiance of God’s glory).  Tonight’s little adventure reminded me that I need to check my light, and that even in the midst of a drawn-out struggle, God will bring about His glory within me, with perseverance in discipline and faith in His timing.  

How well am I portraying Christ to those around me?  Certainly, I’m not perfect, but one of my highest goals should be to live in such a way that Christ and His glory are blatantly apparent.  I am thankful for God’s reminder to me tonight in candle wicks, of the priority of being a light for Him to the world.  Whether that be to my husband, to my family, friends, other christians, my coworkers, other drivers on the road, or the cashier at the grocery store.  I should strive for God’s light to be so bright in me that it shines on everyone around me.  (And it’s possible!  I have seen it in other christians.)

Am I hiding Him in my heart, or am I sharing His light and joy with everyone I come in contact with?  Am I skirting around talking about Him and what He has to say about an issue, or am I being bold in Christ and His love?  

Am I under a basket, or on a lampstand?

Weekly Impressions - Bless the Lord

I began this journaling discipline as a way to train myself to give thanks in everything (1 Thessalonians 5:18).  Everything is a pretty all-encompassing concept.  There are still things that I am not thankful for, except perhaps in the general sense that God is using it somehow for someone.  I think, though, that part of my goal is to make my thankfulness more personal with God.  When I am thankful, I praise Him and I am more aware of His workings in my life.  Those workings are exciting to watch.

One of those workings that I observed took place this past week.  I was struggling with a bit of disappointment, as well as some anxiety and self-imposed stress.  I was not thankful.  I was actually a little angry.  His working was the prodding in knowing that my anger was not well-founded (not to mention the depression in my disappointment and anxiety over something that I couldn’t control), and that it was a result of my self focus.  One of the best tools that God has given me to take my focus off of myself is to practice - to exercise, if you will - thankfulness.

Simply being thankful is pointless without God in the mix.  To focus on the gift is to remain in the world with things that don’t fulfill.  To focus on the Giver - God - is to live in light of eternity and to experience His joy.  I used my Bible to make it a bit easier to focus on the Giver rather than the gift.  If you ever need something to point you back to God, the Bible is one of the best tools on this earth.

I turned to Psalms and started with Psalm 100.  Praise and thankfulness for God’s Love.  Praise and thankfulness that He made us, and took His children as the sheep of His pasture.  He cares for us and is ever faithful.  I continued reading the psalms, and Psalm 101 talks about ways to guard against a wrong perspective, such as what I watch and the people that I hang out with.  I think I read through Psalm 103 several times.  My prayer echoed “Bless the Lord, oh my soul!”     

As I read the words, I lifted them up to God, using them as my own to praise and thank Him.  I felt myself relax as I just rested in the knowledge that God - the God who loves and cares for me, the God who performed miracles to bring Israel out of Egypt, the God who gives me His Word to lean on - is sovereign (rules) over everything... all-encompassing.

He knows every detail of my life, and deals with me accordingly.  He has saved me from the consequences of my sin, provided all that I need, and shepherds me in the joy of His everlasting life.

“Bless the Lord, oh my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His holy name[!]”  Psalm 103:1

Voicemail

Have you ever called someone and the phone rang and rang and never went to voicemail or an answering machine?  It’s annoying because you need to tell the person something, and, though you’d be fine with leaving a message, there isn’t a way to leave one.  Sad face.

I am thankful for voicemail (and answering machines), and for the ability to tell someone something important even though he or she isn’t there.  I am also thankful for my own voicemail, so that I can receive such messages from others.  Messages can be rather important.

I am glad, though, that God doesn’t have voicemail.  My “messages” go straight to Him.  He always answers when His children call... even if it’s the answer that we usually hate:  wait.  

There are times when He seems farther away, but I have found that the feeling is usually due to a sin that I’m holding onto.  Sin is what keeps us “apart” from God, which is why we had to accept Christ and the perfect sacrifice of His Son to atone for our sins and bridge the gap that sin creates between God and us.  That feeling that God is far away is a big warning signal in my own life that I really need to examine myself - especially my motives.

Does it feel like you’re getting God’s voicemail?  Hang in there and have faith.  If you pursue Him, He will reveal Himself.  That’s a promise:  “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13

Lunch Breaks

I used to be of the opinion that a lunch break was really just in the way of my work.  To stop and take a break interrupted my work flow.  I have, however, come to appreciate the time to step away from work, and have been thankful for the time to walk around the lake.  Today, I really needed to read my Bible as I struggled emotionally.  My lunch break was the perfect time to do it.

I struggled with anxiety and depression a bit, and as I read the Psalms (Psalm 100 and thereabouts), my focus began to redirect.  Reading my Bible was a wonderful reminder of the God whom I serve, and of the praise and thanks that He is due.  It was the beginning of a turn-around from the downward direction that my day had seemed to be heading.  There wasn’t an immediate happiness, but the joy of the Lord crept through that dark cloud.

I am thankful that I had a lunch break during which I could meet my need of reading His Word.  I pray that I would continue to clasp that focus of the awe, wonder, and grace of God.  He even gave me a Beautiful View to top off my day.  What an amazing God I serve!

Organization

I love to organize.  If it’s practical, I will color-code, alpha-numeritize, bag, label, and do anything necessary to make things look neat, clean, and be as detailed as possible.  I find it funny; my house is usually a mess.  I think I get so carried away that it just takes too much time to do the job “right.”  Practicality often deteriorates the more detailed side of things, and my excitement level seems to deteriorate along with it (unless I achieve that balance of simplistic detail).

The nice thing about my mess, though, is that - in a very loose way - my things are still organized.  Ask me where a tool or certain piece of paper is, and I should be able to find it rather quickly.  (Ask me where I set something, though - like my glasses, keys, phone, or water bottle - and I may be searching for hours!)

Getting organized makes me feel all neat and clean, but the really great thing is being able to use the organizational systems I create, and seeing them in action.  The right organizational system can save loads of time.  It’s a nice payoff when I’ve created one that works well - especially when someone else can use it, too!

I am thankful that God made it possible to organize things, not only for the time it saves, but also for the creativity it evokes, and the ability to serve someone else through that gift.  May I remember that the gifts He gives me are meant to be shared!

Taste Buds

Imagine a world in which you couldn’t taste all of the wonderful varieties of food.  If you’re going to have to fill your body with sustenance, you might as well enjoy its flavor, right?  We don’t have the phrase “the spice of life” for nothing.

Part of enjoying life as God has created it is enjoying the flavor of food through our taste buds 2-3 times a day.  I am thankful that God gave us taste buds as one of the ways to further enjoy what He has given us.  The fact that our tastes vary is a further expression of His and our creativity.  

Speaking of taste buds and creativity... where’s my Cookiedough?

Nursery Workers

Each Sunday my husband and I are able to enjoy the sermon because we can take our year-and-a-half old son to the nursery during the teaching.  Sometimes their job is easy, and sometimes, “not so easy” is a gross understatement.  I don’t know about you, but a crying baby can really stress me out.  More than one crying baby?  Not a pretty picture.

I am so thankful for our nursery workers at church who - rain or shine in regard to children’s temperaments - are there each Sunday as a ministry to the parents of our congregation.  Here’s your shout-out from a grateful mom:  praise the Lord for His ministry and blessing through you!

Weekly Impressions - Seek Ye First

When I think of the verse “...seek first His kingdom and His righteousness...”  (Matthew 6:33a), it’s often a nebulous “Oh yes, seek God first in all things,” but I don’t have a clear picture of what that looks like.  In essence, it means to seek God’s will in all things.  Okay... what does that look like?

Take relationships, for example.  I am to seek His will in my relationships with others.  He is to always be on my mind.  What would God have me do with or for this person right now?  What would God have me say?  Or, perhaps more easily understandable, how can I portray God’s image - His glory, grace, fruit of the spirit, etc. - in this moment?

I had forgotten this mindset, and was glad that the Lord gave me a classic example of what happens when I don’t pursue that mindset.  The example was in my relationship with my family, which I think is the easiest place to let my spiritual guard down.  I was having a difficult time with my son, needed to make myself breakfast, and was waiting for my husband to relieve me of taking care of the little man.  Where was my mindset?  On the fact that I had needs that weren’t being met.  I certainly wasn’t thinking about how best to portray God’s image to my family, and I was pretty frustrated and put out as a result.

It wasn’t until my husband had taken our son, and I was cooking breakfast that the Lord recalled to my mind what I had written just the night before on Relationships.  A fine example I was of what I “preached.”  I was not putting God first and living in the resulting joy.

So, I have confessed my sin before God and my husband, and am beginning anew in His grace (also seen through my husband).  I am so thankful for the Lord’s Grace, and look forward to improving my walk with Him through His guidance.  He Teaches me more as time goes on.  May I seek His will in all things.

Relationships

Relationships are what drive us.  Whether it’s our relationship with our family, our friends, our coworkers, or - most importantly - with God.  We seek purpose and fulfillment in them:  the recognition of our accomplishments at work, the affirmation of and time spent with friends; the cohesion of and love from our family.  These are all good things... until I place my hope and worth in them.

My relationship with God should be foremost at all times.  It is so easy to get caught up in the dynamics of the relationships in life and to let them take precedence.  They can be most enjoyable (as was His intention)!  However, when my focus shifts away from seeking His will within my relationships, I start to feel empty.  Earning recognition or affirmation or any of that means nothing when confronted by God’s Grace.  When my relationship with Him is set, all others fall into place, and not only is my part in those relationships clearer, but those relationships have more meaning.  He puts everything in perspective - a joyous perspective.

I am thankful for the relationships around me, but I am most thankful for my relationship with God.  It is He who sustains me; He who watches over me at all times.  He is the keeper and protector of my soul.  Life is so much richer in Christ.

Spare Keys

I really like having pockets, because their use means that I’m less likely to forget my keys or phone somewhere.  Today was a day when I had no pockets.  I went to use the ladies’ room in the building next door at work, which requires a key.  I brought my keys over and found the door locked, but ajar, so went in.  I set my keys down to attend to other things, and, once finished, left the building and closed the door behind me.

I got about half-way to the building that I work in and realized that I had just effectively locked my keys in the other building.  Oops.  Fortunately for me, we keep a spare key in my office.  Retrieving my keys was, thus, a simple matter, thanks to the spare.  Without it, I would have had to waste a fair amount of time to acquire someone else’s keys, retrieve my keys, and then return the keys I borrowed to their owner.

For such a small and simple thing, it can save quite a bit of time and hassle.  I am thankful for spare keys, that God used ours in my life to save me from what could have been a frustrating circumstance.

Audiobooks

My husband and I haven’t listened to an audiobook for a little while, but we do rather enjoy it.  I, personally, love to read books, but my priorities have needed to be elsewhere for quite some time.  Since my husband and I are in the car a lot, it works well for us to be able to listen to an audiobook together.  

We enjoyed the first two Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss, as well as some of the Reacher series by Lee Child.  (The first requires some maturity and the second is not family-friendly, by the way.)  We liked not only being able to listen to a book that we didn’t have time to read, but also being able to share in the experience together.  

I am thankful for audiobooks, that they provide a way in which my husband and I can enjoy a book together.  I believe that it’s important in marriage to do things together that we enjoy, and am delighted at the versatility in things (like books becoming audiobooks) that God has allowed for.

Remote Deposits

If you aren’t sure what a remote deposit is, it’s a check deposit into your bank account with your phone.  You just snap a picture of the front and back of a check you’ve received, and fill out a couple bits of information about the check through an application from your bank on your phone.  Since I don’t have much extra time on my hands, I have become a fan of remote deposits.

I’m busy in the morning (usually with my family) and I don’t get off work until 6:00 p.m., which means I’m usually not available when the bank is open.  It can be quite awhile before I get a check deposited.  I usually only receive checks when someone pays us back for something, which means that I front the money in the interim.  While it isn’t usually a big deal, it does offer peace of mind to not front that money for an extended period of time.

I am thankful for remote deposits, that God has used them in my life to take care of deposits faster, which is better for our finances.  The creativity that He grants the human race can be fun to watch.  I don’t think I ever would have thought that a remote deposit was possible before discovering them!

Skirts

With the hot weather lately (107 degrees in the shade at my house), I have been thankful for my cooler skirts.  They allow a little more air to circulate around my legs to help keep them cool, but still cover them from the sun.

I love long skirts, with the feel of the fabric on top of my feet, especially when they still allow enough room for a wide stride.  The only reason I don’t wear skirts more often is because the shoes that match skirts won’t allow for my orthotics; I mostly just wear skirts on Sundays.

I feel more like a woman in the right skirt.  It changes the way that I walk, much like the right pair of shoes.  I am thankful for skirts as one of the many “little things” that God gives us to treasure.