Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.  It turns what we have into enough, and more.  It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.  It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.  Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.  ~Melody Beattie

Today I unpacked boxes and decorated for Christmas. It was a wonderful opportunity to look back and be thankful that God blessed me with such a loving family. I unwrapped a tiny handprint (outlined in glitter.) My precious Mary Michael was only two years old at the time. She is now twenty-four and an enormous blessing with her constant cheerful attitude. Her hands have always chosen to help others…it is the very thing God uses, and it looks beautiful in His service. I unwrapped a picture of Meg sitting sideways (with a straw hat on) sucking her thumb. Her smile was one covered with a little chocolate and her bare feet with curled toes peeked out from under her dress. This bombshell of joy exploded in our hearts twenty one years ago. Always happy, always humming, always chatting to herself, Meg was fun to raise (after four)! Always observant she noticed the clothes of the poor, the paralytic, and the elderly. Her eyes were always on the needy. I love that most about her. This journey from Thanksgiving to Christmas is always a time to give thanks and prayer. A time to put aside our personal suffering and to kneel in great and humble thanks to a God that has given every second, every minute, every hour. He has numbered our days. He has extended His love from heaven. He sent His son to bridge the gap of suffering. And so when I look around at the tiny ornaments made twenty years ago, I am reminded of their joyful place in our family, and I reminisce with some tears…I am the most grateful mom on earth. How God chose to bless me with my family…well, I am at a total loss for words. He surely opened heaven and sent them as a rich and bountiful blessing!

Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!
Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come before him, singing with joy.
Acknowledge that the Lord is God!
He made us, and we are his.
We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good.
His unfailing love continues forever,
and his faithfulness continues to each generation.

Psalm 100

I don’t know what your circumstances are this Thanksgiving. Do you have a job? Are your finances secured? Are your children suffering? Are you aging? Children grown and distant? I have no idea what each family might be experiencing, but I do know that true healing can take place. I know that God is alive and well. He listens and cares for His children. He desires to have a deep and solid relationship with you. He does not intervene with a magic wand, but He intervenes with a massive, engulfing love. His love can hold tightly through the ebb and flow of threatening conflict. He invades your heart with a peace and security that cannot be measured. He creates a canvas of His strength and sustains you through the darkest storm and night. His blazing love warms the coldest heart and provides comfort in times of searing pain. I have experienced His love in times of miscarriage, health issues, and even death. His presence lingered. His presence sustained. His presence reigned. Be thankful that you have the creator of the universe as a Savior. Be thankful and sing praise for His faithfulness. Bow. Kneel. Fall before His Throne. Honor His unfailing love.

Yours, O LORD, is the greatness,
The power and the glory,
The victory and the majesty;
For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;
Yours is the kingdom, O LORD,

And You are exalted as head over all.

Both riches and honor come from You,
And You reign over all.
In Your hand is power and might;
In Your hand it is to make great
And to give strength to all.

“Now therefore, our God,
We thank You
And praise Your glorious name.

1 Chronicles 29:11-13

Mike and I have something to be cherished. We are best friends. We spent a lot of time deciding we were God’s best for each other. Mike more than I. We knew everything about each other when we married…and we laughed a lot. It has been a solid recipe for happiness. We have endured financial turmoil, pregnancy issues, and health crises. And at every bend…a faithful and enduring loved one has met us. He has carried us when we were too weak to stand. He sent some of you as recruitments when we needed lavish and extravagant love. We are richly blessed with friends and loved ones. “Truly no man is failure if he has friends.” We stand thankful and blessed by your giving and kindness. Jay and Michele Knight even bought decorations and their family came and decorated our tree when Mike was at Piedmont recovering from surgery. I think of them and smile as I hang some of their remaining ornaments on my tree. Joe Ricciardi, and his son, bought a new mailbox (and put it in the ground) when a neighbor (or Mike) had bumped it over. Pam and Mike Cornelison stayed with us from beginning to the end. Belinda Smith drove to Emory to just say a gorgeous prayer over me. Alison Moore brought her Rainbow cleaner…and cleaned my house!! Darrell and Rhonda Whitton visited, sent gifts, and came with carolers to sing when we came home from the hospital. Then when I was almost depressed…they called and took me to dinner. There were countless meals put together by Amy Bridges, and a card in the mail every day from a church friend. And everyone should have Jon Ramsden as a friend when their sick leave is in question…and finally Dennis Parman…God’s angel that carried us through with his donation of sick leave. How can we ever thank you? You are our greatest and strongest blessings. You are an example of love in action. Forever will we be indebted for your great gifts of service. “If you did this unto the least of these you did it unto me.” Thank you for your strength when we were weak. May all the Praise, Honor, and Glory go to Christ our Lord.

God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today.  Have you used one to say “thank you?”  ~William A. Ward

And so I give thanks. I give thanks that God has been faithful in partnering with Mike and me. Our two girls are icing on the cake. They are blessings. They are gifts. They are His, and He chose to share them with us. Every glittered ornament, every faded photograph is a reminder of His generous love. Children are His arrows. He will shoot them into a future that only He knows. He will aim them just perfectly for the target He has created. What joy they have brought, and will continue to bring. I have watched them take their first steps, walk into their first school, ride their first bike, speak their first words, and lose their first teeth. Thank you Lord. Thank you for each ‘maple syrup kiss’ each sloppy smooch, each goodnight squeeze, and each late night dance. Thank for their glitter trail through the years. And thank you that all that glitter created two stars that shine brightly for you. I just want to thank you this Thanksgiving for all my beautiful gifts of family, and friends. Tonight as we sat around the table together I felt your continued and abiding presence. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you that your love always wins…every single time.

Wonderful, Merciful Savior   By: Selah

Wonderful, merciful Savior
Precious Redeemer and Friend
Who would have thought that a Lamb
Could rescue the souls of men
Oh you rescue the souls of men

Almighty, infinite Father
Faithfully loving Your own
Here in our weakness You find us
Falling before Your throne
Oh, we’re falling before Your Throne