Category Archives: Gratitude

Tuned in to Him

Posted on by

A few weeks before Christmas a friend told me that she was praying that her son would develop a preference for Christian music over secular music.  The comment came and went so quickly that I didn’t have time to really think about it, but since that conversation it has been on my mind and I think we should pray that her son and all of us will tune in to Him, regardless of the specific music we prefer.   It we are tuned into Him we will hear Him in all music.  We will hear His message in what is said, and what is not said.  His message will come through everywhere, in all moments, quiet, loud, joyful, sorrowful, peaceful or crazy and in all moments a whispered Thank You Lord will boom louder than thunder at the foot of His throne.

Thank You Lord, Thank You Lord, Thank You Lord – please let my heart and lips never tire of saying Thank You Lord!

Deep in the woods

Posted on by

My husband loves to camp, and I have grown to really enjoy it too. The last time we were camping, I was lying awake listening to the sounds of the night and I had an amazing thought…

What if we have lost our ability to clearly hear and understand the creatures of the night?  To us they sound like noise, usually with a beat and in unison, but nothing more than a mixture of sounds, but what if they are really saying

“Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God the Almighty, who was and is and is to come.”
– Revelation 4:8

Maybe all together and moving in unison and working as one, they become the four living creatures around the throne of God who are full of eyes all around and inside, singing praise to God our Father day and night without ceasing.

That night I listened and tried to hear it, but eventually I fell asleep, but you, my friends, whose hearts have remained holy and pure – listen because I am sure deep in the woods you will hear the the never ceasing praise sung by the very least creatures here on earth for the greatest of all, our Lord God the Almighty!

Mother of God

Posted on by

Hail Mary, full of grace.
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb,
Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

Mother of God, Mother – of – God, Mother —- of —-  God… as you pray stop here for a moment and think about it, meditate on it, sit in the silent echo of these words and wonder…

I was awed into complete silence as I sat meditating on these words – Mother of God

God’s Art

Posted on by

In the last few years I have begun to develop an appreciation and love for visual art.  I was walking through a museum a few years ago when a light bulb suddenly went off in my head as I realized what billions before me already knew… each painting represented a moment in the life of a soul.  That day I saw that some had shared a moment of their pain, others had shared a moment of their joy, some shared a moment of their fear, and at least one had shared a moment of deep understanding, a moment when that soul dove into the infinity of their present moment and then translated it onto a canvas.

I cried that day as I walked through the museum feeling humbled and amazed by so many souls laid bare before me.

Tonight as I was reading the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan, he wrote about God’s art throughout creation and interestingly enough I read about this a few weeks ago in Romans during a bible study.  Oh Lord please forgive my inability to quickly grasp what You are trying to tell me… tonight I think Your message finally broke through.

God has bared His soul before us… and oh how AMAZING it is!!!

What more is there to say other than – Thank You, thank You, thank You for the Grace to truly see Your Art, Your Heart, Your Soul!

His plans cannot be thwarted!

Posted on by

I received a book in the mail a few days ago.  I am very excited to read it, but each time I have sat down to begin, something has distracted or interrupted me and twice I have fallen right to sleep.

If the author was still alive he might suggest that my plans to read it are being thwarted, but as this thought crossed my mind this evening I was reminded that even if this is the case, He already knew it would happen.  He waits so patiently for me to begin, knowing the exact hour, minute and second when I will finally sit down and begin to decipher this message that He has sent me.

Fear not my friends… His plans cannot be thwarted!

You are welcome

Posted on by

Isn’t it interesting that in english the correct response to Thank you is You are welcome?  You are gladly received or willingly permitted, admitted, accepted.  Where did this originate?  Perhaps a language expert could enlighten us on the true historical details of where this response originated from, but what if we let our imaginations roam for a bit?

Perhaps long ago there was a person or a group of people who truly passed on every Thank you they received to God knowing that anything they had done to deserve the gift of gratitude was from God, so in turn their response to Thank you changed from It was nothing or No problem and became You are welcome as an inspired message from God to communicate with others and let them know that they too were welcome in His Kingdom.

As I stretch my imagination to make this up tonight, I hope that my own responses to Thank you in the future will move away from the personally accepting phrases of No problem, It was nothing, and sure, to His inspired message of You are welcome with a prayer that I am nothing more than an instrument of communication.

 

Returning to innocence…

Posted on by

My grandmother is very sick and will probably die soon.  I don’t live in the same city so I haven’t seen her in a while, but my mom and dad continue to share the details of her days.

Her recent memories have begun to fade, while those from long ago remain.  She is again being fed her meals as she was when she was a little baby, and she is filled with the joy and gratitude of a child when each visitor arrives in her room.  As I watch and listen from a distance, it seems as if the layers, the years, the hurt and the pain are being stripped away from my grandmother and she is returning to the innocence of her childhood and the purity of her baptism.

I am again in awe of our Amazing Father in Heaven and His Amazing Plan that we can’t imagine or understand, but sometimes glimpse when the light of understanding hits the veil at just the right angle.

Thank You sweet Lord and please do what You must to strip us clean and bring us all home to You!

AMAZED

Posted on by

My mind is a jumble of thoughts as I think of infinity buried in a point where everything on the inside is bigger than what is on the outside, and how difficult it is to wrap my earthly mind around this, as I look at the night sky and feel infinitesimally small, but then attempt to accept or believe or have faith that there is something or some place so much bigger buried and hidden from us in a point, in a second, in a planck length.

And then I am AMAZED to the point of tears with an aching joy in my heart knowing that somehow, mysteriously this is TRUE…

 

And Jesus said, “What do you want me to do for you?”

Posted on by

Sometimes we pray and pray and then pray some more, but do we know what we are asking Jesus to do for us?

I am often praying for forgiveness.  Forgive me for this, forgive me for that, forgive my sin from yesterday, forgive my sin from 15 years ago, etc.  This morning I was praying for forgiveness for something yet again, and I thought to myself or He said, “I have forgiven you, and I will forgive you again, and I will continue forgiving you as many times as you request to be forgiven, but when will you release your sin and give it to Me?”

When will I release my sin, when will I give it to Him?  He has already accepted it, He has already died for it, but have I let it go and actually given it to Him by accepting His forgiveness?

Have I become comfortable wallowing in my sin, remembering it, begging forgiveness and then returning to wallow in the comfort  of being an unforgiven sinner yet again?  I am not sure…. maybe?  I am not saying that we shouldn’t be praying for and begging for forgiveness often and more than once, but I think I have been missing a very crucial part to this prayer, a prayer asking Jesus to help me release my sin, give it to Him and enter the unknown territory of forgiven sinner by accepting His forgiveness.

Sweet Lord, sweet Savior, sweet Jesus I am in awe as I see Your amazing work more clearly than ever before through more specific and focused prayers.  I want each beat of my heart to be filled with gratitude and thanksgiving for You and I beg You to please keep opening our eyes to our sins so that we can beg forgiveness, repent and release our sin to You!

The Ancient Paths

Posted on by

Just as impurities should be removed from the original metals during the process of making an alloy to increase the strength and durability of the alloy (the new metal), our impurities should be cleansed and removed before He melts our hearts into one new heart through marriage.

If our hearts are full of impurities, then how can we ever hope for our new heart to be strong.  These impurities will cause our new heart to be brittle, weak, and easily damaged requiring constant attention and surgical repair.

Sweet Lord, we have neglected the need to seek cleansing and purification through reflection, prayer, fasting and confession before the many celebrations of our lives, but most of all before our marriages.  We have turned the time of engagement and preparation into yet another party rather a time of reflection, prayer and a time to seek You.  Please forgive us and help us seek the ancient paths, where the good way lies.

Jeremiah 6:16
Thus says the Lord:  Stand at the crossroads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way lies; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.