Gratitudes and Gifts on Mondays

Give your life away in exchange for many lives, give away your blessings to multiply blessings, give away so that many might increase, and do it all for the love of God. Ann VonKamp from her blog entry 3/10/11



I spent more time than I should have traveling from one blog to another reading the multitudes of gratitudes lists posted each Monday. I’m so glad I did. I have read of broken hearts that somehow found the grace to thank the Lord,. I have read of hard situations and times of struggles that praised God over and over for strength and courage and provisions. I have read of happy, good times, times of growth, times of doubt, times of fun. All with hundreds and hundreds gratitudes offered up to the Lord. It’s been an amazing week for me. My faith has deepened greatly, my eyes seem to be open wider and the doom and gloom blurry haze seems lifted to where I can see --- really SEE --- the goodness of the Lord in all things, and my hands have loosened from a clenched fist to being at least a little open and ready to receive “all things” as good gifts from His hand. And so I continue to share my list, giving credit to Him because “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” James 1:17

69. Lunch! A mixture of leftovers. A little baked potato, a little spam, some pepper cheese, fresh eggs. Oh, I just didn’t want to break those beautiful, fresh eggs. They were so pretty. But lunch was even better all baked together!!!!

70. Bird seed. The whole neighborhood of my feathered friends must stand watch and pass the word quickly. I’m no sooner back in the house and there they are -- splashes of red, blue, gray, brown --- each looking for their favorites on this free for all, all you can eat, buffet!

71. Mailman. A smile as bright as his shiny blue truck. Always remembers. . . . Always asks how I’m doing, waiting for a REAL answer. . . Always willing to bring my mail to the door, remembering days when I couldn’t make it all the way to the mailbox and back.

72. Catbird. I don’t see him often, as he’s skiddish and a loner. But today, he had one thing on his mind. I guess there was a bug in my wisteria. Mr. Catbird had NO appreciation for the beauty of my flowers, but rather, one by one, plucked the blooms off and let them drift with the breezes. He finally found his lunch and was on his way. So I’m minus one cluster of flowers. It was worth watching this guy find his free lunch.

73. Struggles that make me stronger.

74. Doubts that make me dig until faith is sure.

75. The BEST quesadillas!!! (how in the world do you spell those things???) Sauteed onions and peppers, add pieces of cooked turkey. Heat through. Mix up shredded cheese (the kind with the hot peppers in it), dried cranberries and a smidge of honey. Put flour tortillas on cookie sheet, spread onion/turkey mixture on each, then top with cheese/cranberry mixture. Put another tortilla on top. Place in oven and cook till cheese melts. The absolute best!!!!

76. A Skype session with my sister! Always a guaranteed laugh, big smiles, and great conversation. Even Buster made his face known, climbing up on my shoulder and smooching while looking at his face on the screen!

77. Breakfast out with another sister. Stopped at Lowe’s for eggplant plants then wondered WHY???? A good breakfast, then the grocery store.

78. Squeaking of a new toy for Buster! Always a good day when a new toy is found in the grocery bag.

79. Learning how to pray for someone, when you really don’t know what to pray for. I need to give credit here to someone who posted about this a few days ago, but I have no idea where I was, what blog it was on, or whether I read it in a book or what! All I remember, I jotted down, “ Colossians 1 -- how to pray for someone when you don’t know what to pray for.” I knew right away this would be my next memorizing challenge.

80. Small, tiny sycamore leaves popping out on my tree. The long, winter’s nap is over and it’s time. What amazes me most is how small these leaves are, yet perfectly shaped like sycamore tree leaves! They will grow quickly, keeping that shape, and will hang on for about 8 or 9 months, waving their huge hands at me constantly. A perfect shade tree, a sheltering tree, a place of bird feeders, squirrel gymnastics, a pulpit at the top for a crow to preach from. . .but most of all, a tree full of memories.

81. An unexpected gift from a very dear friend! There it was. All wrapped so beautifully in a vintage hankie. Tied with a bow. A copy of Ann’s book, 1,000 gifts. I have felt so selfish because I did NOT want to pass my copy on to anyone. I’ve been clinging to it, going back to it again and again. But now, I have a “special” one to keep and I can give mine away. Lea B! You are a treasure in my life, just as you are to so, so many! Wrapped up in you are more than 1,000 gifts, but the most cherished of all is the one called “friend.”

82. Thursday night Bible study, spilled coffee cleaned up with laughs and smiles, fellowship so sweet, new faces, new babes in Christ -- can it get any better than that?

83. Soft strumming of a guitar, Amazing Grace softly sung with a friend.

84. Morning coffee with a dear friend and neighbor. Sharing hearts, God-moments, and glimpses of “life in the rear view mirror” --- what can be better!

85. A huge, heavy box full of Bible study reference books! Some so old --- from the 1800’s. I love the smell, the yellowed pages, the quaint language. I just love holding them. But the print is soooooo small. How in the world did they read these books by candlelight?

86. French toast made with farm fresh eggs, a little butter, a little honey. . . . Oh, so good!!!!

87. Katy’s quote on her blog, “God made you as you are! He placed you where you are! So you can best serve and glorify Him just as you are, where you are.” Why do I always think a million things have to change before God can use me, that I always need to be “better”????

88. A brisk walk down a little dirt road with my sister. . . And, oh yes, Gypsy, the cat following all the way speaking her mind that we were getting much too far from home for her, titmice yelling at us to get the cat out of their territory, and the wind blowing a chill through us making us wonder if our veggies would freeze tonight???

89. Buster’s little nightmares and whimpering at my feet! Maybe they are big to him, I don’t know. He has had these since I got him as a puppy, and I hug him close every time and remind him that I’m right there. He heaves a big sigh, gives me a kiss, and goes back to sleep. Such a reminder to me to say, “What time I am afraid, I will put my trust in Thee.”
How much more He cares for me that I can ever care for Buster! (and that’s a LOT)

90. Tacos!

91. Safety and security. In light of the disaster in Japan, I was reminded today of Psalm 91 -- “HE WHO dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty [Whose power no foe can withstand].
I will say of the Lord, He is my Refuge and my Fortress, my God; on Him I lean and rely, and in Him I [confidently] trust!
For [then] He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence.
[Then] He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings shall you trust and find refuge; His truth and His faithfulness are a shield and a buckler.” I wonder if it were me, could I sing, “It is well with my soul?”

92. Jo Ellen -- another breast cancer hero celebrates 1 ½ years since treatment! Her tender heart finds ways to encourage others going down the same horrible pathway
while still fighting herself! Thank you, JoEllen for your courage, faith, and your caring spirit!

93. No damage from frost on my little veggie plants! It reached 34 degrees last night and stopped going down. They shivered a little, but seem ok in the warming sun today.

94. The mockingbird learning new songs. It’s amazing that he does this --- sits on the same utility pole every morning and lets it all hang out. On and on he goes, one song after another. But today was the limit -- the ultimate! I thought it was the crow that wouldn’t shut up. But when I looked???? -- you guessed it --- Mr. Mockingbird has learned this one, too! One bird’s caw is another bird’s song!

95. A message of comfort and hope from a tender-hearted Pastor. To allow the Savior to touch us in all the worst of our situations of life, just as He did the leper in Matt. 8. It took me so long in life to learn about His gentle, comforting, safe touch. I tried so hard to fix everything myself. It’s only when I found myself in the situation where He was all I had that I found out that He was all I needed.

96. An email packed full to running over with encouragement and love. Someone who can just stir up the gifts within you like an old cook with a wooden spoon.

97. Watching a squirrel take a leap of faith from a branch that is just a little too far from the roof. Just barely made it --- hanging by little claws to the edges, pulling himself up.

98. A shared lunch of fish sandwiches from the drive up window at Wendys. Isn’t it neat how you just do certain things with certain friends? And this had always been our thing --- drive up windows, eating in the car, people watching, etc. It’s been a while, and it was great to sit in the warm Spring sun and enjoy a sandwich together again.

I took the time this past week to read as many of the other gratitude counters' lists as I could get to. I can truly say, I did not go away from even one unblessed. There is just something about these lists that lift your heart and cause you to soar for the day! Please click on the banner below to find all these thankful hearts: