BRING ME THE SACRIFICE... of your thankfulness

God wants us to be thankful in all circumstances. (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

The book mentions to take nothing for granted, not even the sun rising. We could easily continue that...

Top TEN things (including the miniscual) I'm most thankful for right now:

1. Air to breathe
2. Fresh water from the tap
3. Flush toilets
4. My family
5. My friends
6. Snow
7. Skis
8. Technology
9. Food
10. Health

There that probably took me no more than a minute... but how often do I actually take time to focus and give God thanks for even the little things and not just answered prayers? Sadly, it's never that I thank God for the air I breathe or flush toilets. There's a reason for the saying, "You don't know what you have until it's gone."

I like one paragraph so much I want to copy it all, I can't just pick and choose because it's all good.

When you focus on what you don't have or on situations that displease you, your mind also becomes darkened. You take for granted life, salvation, sunshine, flowers, and countless other gifts from Me. You look for what is wrong and refuse to enjoy life until that is "fixed."

(Now I'm thankful for typing too.)

I can imagine the life I would have if I started giving thanks for everything in my life. I want to do it! Think of what a change of outlook and life transformation we could have. Also think of how much joy would replace the darkened "want" spots in our lives.

Father God THANK YOU for the life I've been given. I pray that it would be a pleasing sacrifice unto You. I love you!

LET ME FILL YOU...

I had never thought of our lives in such a way as the book puts it.

"Though you are an earthen vessel, I designed you to be filled with heavenly contents."

We are not designed to hold on to the garbage this world kindly offers us. It makes sense why when we hold on to the things (I suppose we could just label the things=SIN) that we're not programmed to that we malfunction. In the past I've tried to operate in a web of lies... didn't work out so great for me. It wasn't until my balancing act failed and I finally turned to God to pick up all my pieces and put them back the way He intended. It was a painful process, but definitely necessary. I've learned from my past and it's made me who I am. It has also allowed God opportunities to work in my life and show me His grace.

By trusting God rather than ourselves for the daily strength we need, we not only have more peace but we are also filling our lives with heavenly content which will ensure we function properly.

Thank you God that your grace and strength is abundant enough for me.

I was sitting behind a Jeep at the stoplight today and their spare tire cover had the "Life is Good" logo on it. A still small voice in me agreed that Life is Good, but as a Christian we can claim that Death is Better.

I MEET YOU...

He seeks us out to meet with us, but we have to do our part as well. We must take time to calm our souls so that we can hear the precious words He wishes to whisper into our lives.

The still small voice that we long to hear will only find a way to us when we take time to wait for it.

Father, thank you for the reminder that I am not seeking you alone but that you are seeking me as well. Thank you for acknowledging all my attempts to create a quite space in my life for you, no mater how meager they may seem... or how distracted I may become with little bodies interrupting me.

IN ME YOU HAVE EVERYTHING.

It's true. There is nothing that I will ever need that God doesn't provide for me already. I might not have the cute dress I want or get to indulge in dinners out as often as I want or possibly work in the profession that pays a ton. But that's all it will ever be... WANTS and nothing more. Everything I need is taken of care of.

Thank you God for providing for all my needs and going even beyond that. I should focus on all that I have and know that you love me and show it to me daily. Sometimes I just forget to look. I need to take the time and look more frequently.

I HAVE PROMISED

God continually makes promises to us. His promises are always for our good and He never breaks them!

Today's devotion says that our deepest and most constant need is for His peace. I get it. Without peace in my life I'm a mess. Peace gets me through trying times and calms me. If we're not careful peace will easily get lost when we are living away from the fruits of the spirit.

I Am Calling You!

This is so pertinent to my 'right now'.
I'm sitting on my bed, with a 'to do' list on the back of my devotional. Just last night I was encouraging mum with their work situation, that she needs to find the joy of the Lord in all circumstances (I was absolutely preaching to myself also!)
I've recently been thinking how simple my life is at this stage. I have very few things biding for my time, very few things to worry about, and yet, I still don't make much time to talk to God. Today's devo said to talk to God about every aspect of my life, including my feelings. And that I need to keep communications open with Him. This is something I really need to work on.
I need to be more open, letting the Holy Spirit guide me, not my foot long to do list!

I AM CALLING YOU

To be in constant communion with God... when I first read this I thought it sounded like a life of utopia. A life filled with bliss. After pondering and mulling it over in my mind I realized that to be in constant communion with my maker is not the easy path of life. Rather it is the path that will lead us in the right direction through the chaos and provide us with hope and joy as we travel it.

I love how the book points out three key things:
1. "remember that your ultimate goal is not to control or fix everything around you; it is to keep communing with Me"
2. "a successful day is one in which you have stayed in touch with Me, even if many things remain undone at the end of the day"
and
3. "do not let your to-do list become an idol directing your life."

Talk about changing my perspective! This is so freeing!! As a mother to two young boys and a wife I often feel as though I failing miserably during the day. There's always something I could be working on around the house and then there's a million things that Garth thinks I should be doing and rarely do I get around to finishing everything. Now, to be reminded that it doesn't matter... the weights have just be lifted off my shoulders. Not to say that this gives me a free pass to not do anything. I'm just relieved from feeling unaccomplished. We're only here for a short time and shouldn't we be storing up our treasures in heaven? Wouldn't communion with God be considered one of the biggest treasures of all? Even if I don't finish my to-do list all that matters is that I was chatting it up with God all day long. Telling him about my frustrations, telling him about my excitement, letting Him know when I'm tired and exhausted, letting Him know I need His strength more than my own.

I hope that I can look back on today while I lay in bed tonight and think, "God and I held a conversation through the entire day." SUCCESS!