Thankful Thursday

 

 

I met with my protégé last evening

 

we were talking about grace

 

specifically about extending the grace we have received to those around us; especially our wives

 

I am very thankful for the grace God has shown me

 

thankful for salvation that comes by grace through faith

 

I'm thankful for God's word and the opportunity to study it together with other men

 

It was encouraging and challenging to do that last evening

 

I'm thankful for the opportunities God has given me to invest in others

 

One of those opportunities is coming up on Saturday when I will be using my musical gifts to participate in a funeral service

 

I'm honored to be asked to do this, and grateful for the relational growth that comes out of it

 

Often in these situations, I don't feel worthy

 

But I'm thankful God chooses to use me as His servant, not based on my worth, but based on the redemptive work of Christ's shed blood on the cross

 

Because I've been washed clean, He sees me as righteous

 

Thankful for the mystery of His transforming power

 

and so grateful He called me out of darkness into His glorious light

 

I'm thankful for those who walk this journey alongside me

 

as we talked last evening, one of the verses we looked at was in 1 Peter 3 where we are told as husbands that our wives are fellow heirs of the grace of life

 

So thankful for my wife, thankful she is also my sister in Christ

 

grateful for the conversations we can have about faith

 

as we trust God in this new season of our lives, and seek His direction for how we can serve Him as a couple, I'm thankful we have a shared vision

 

the road ahead may be uncertain, but I'm thankful for the confidence that we will walk that road together

 

I'm thankful for the many ways God has poured out His blessing in my life

 

His mercies are new every morning

 

He is compassionate and gracious

 

He does not look on my needs with reproach, but gives generously

 

and He calls me to follow His example and be generous in my responses to others

 

I'm thankful for His patience with me when I stumble along

 

And grateful that He continually upholds me with His righteous right hands

 

I'm very thankful that a day is coming when I will see Jesus and God the Father face to face and forever be in awe of Him and worship Him as He truly deserves

Thankful Thursday

 

 

God is faithful

 

That's been a theme I've been able to focus on throughout this past year

 

It's Thanksgiving Day, a day set aside in our country as a day of "thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens"

 

As I took time today to reflect on the many ways God has demonstrated His grace to me this year, I'm humbled that He has chosen me to be His son, an adopted member of His family

 

I'm so thankful God delights in reconciling people to Himself

 

Thankful He sent Jesus to purchase redemption for me!

 

I'm grateful that redemptive work is ongoing, that God patiently molds and shapes me

 

Having an empty nest with kids scattered all across the country makes for a different feel around the holidays, but I'm thankful for a quiet day with my precious wife.  I'm so thankful for her and the life we share together.

 

When I lost my job at the beginning of this year, I had no idea what the road ahead would look like.  It had been over 20 years since I had to look for a job, or have an interview. 

 

But there was no sense of panic.  I fully believed that God had something for me and that in His timing, He would open that door and provide clear direction to walk through it

 

As I explored options, and had interviews, and heard no from either the company or sometimes from God Himself, it was a faith building time.  I'm very thankful God uses times like this to draw our hearts toward Him and reveal Himself to us

 

I'm thankful for the way He provided different work opportunities throughout the 7 months when I was between jobs.  There were no stressful moments.  There were a few times when I didn't understand the "no", but I knew God was directing.

 

Ps. 32:8 says, "I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you."

 

What a promise!  So thankful for the hope that verse brings to the dark moments when the road ahead is unclear.

 

And now I've been in my new job for almost 4 months, and I know it is God's provision for this stage of our lives.  It's a job filled with variety.  It is giving me opportunity to learn new skills.  And I find myself seeking God's direction on a daily basis for insight into how to efficiently work through projects I'm assigned.  I'm so thankful for the way He answers those prayers with specific and clear direction. 

 

I hope that for all of us, today was an opportunity to do more than just consume large amounts of food and watch football.  I hope that it was a time of rejoicing in the goodness and faithfulness of a God who although He dwells in heaven, He also indwells us by His Spirit.  He is Immanuel, God with us.

 

And for that I am eternally grateful!

Thankful Thursday

 

 

So much to be thankful for as I sit and reflect this evening

 

Chris and I had a great trip out to Colorado for Nate and Carole's wedding

 

It was amazing to see God's creative handiwork in the rockies again

 

There are no words to describe the beauty

 

I'm thankful for the time we had with family

 

I have a book of pictures in my living room titled, "Family is a Gift from God"

 

How true that is

 

I'm thankful for the chance to hang out with Adam and conversations we could have

 

And we arrived back home from that whirlwind trip in time to see Abigail and her boyfriend on Sunday before they flew back to Louisiana.  Thankful for that connection time

 

I'm very thankful for the technology that allows me to see pictures and videos of my little (not so little) grandson, Hudson.

 

With our kids scattered across the country, I'm grateful for the opportunities God gives us to engage with them via phone calls, FaceTime, Skype, etc.

Not only am I thankful for my physical family, but so thankful for my spiritual family also, for brothers and sisters in Christ who bless my life in so many ways

It snowed here today.  4" worth.  I'm not thankful for that, but I am thankful that I had inside work, and that I made it home safely this evening and wasn't involved in any of the multiple accidents I saw along the way

I'm thankful for God's direction.  And His provision.  I know my job is a gift from Him.  I enjoy the work I'm doing, and the people I work for and with. 

I'm thankful God holds me in His hand

Thankful He promises to never leave me or forsake me

I thank God for His compassion and His grace.

His mercies are new every morning!
 

Thankful Thursday

 

 

When God created man, He recognized that "it is not good for man to be alone"

 

so He created Eve to be a companion for Adam

 

I have a sense of what Adam felt when he met Eve.

 

There was a recognition of the blessing he had received.

 

I know that my wife completes me.  I'm not the same without her

 

Prov. 18:22 tells me that she is an expression of God's favor toward me

 

When I picked Chris up at the airport on Saturday, I definitely had that sense of enjoying God's favor

 

I'm so very thankful I get to share my life with her

 

I'm thankful God chose to bring her into my life.  She is one of His greatest gifts to me

 

I'm grateful for the team we make; serving alongside her is such a blessing

 

I'm thankful for the balance she brings in my life, for her strengths that help to compensate for my weaknesses

 

I'm thankful God recognizes my needs

 

Thankful He saw my greatest need and sent Jesus to pay the penalty for my sin

 

I'm thankful His love motivates Him to action

 

I'm thankful He is generous toward me, His son

 

I'm grateful when I express my needs to Him He does not respond with condemnation or reproach

 

As I write this, I'm sitting in Colorado with my wife and son

 

We flew out here to attend our niece's wedding

 

and so another couple will be joined together in God's great design of marriage

 

I'm thankful for the opportunity to celebrate this event with family

 

I'm thankful for my family, my growing family!

 

I'm thankful God has allowed me to be a father, and now a grandfather as well

 

I'm hopeful He will use me to leave a godly legacy in the lives of my family

 

I'm thankful His grace is sufficient, that His power is perfected in my weakness

 

I'm thankful God's mercies are new every morning

 

It gives me courage to face each new day

 



Thankful Thursday

 

 

One of the reasons I continue to write these Thankful Thursday blog posts is because I know how easy it is to lose sight of my blessings when I'm facing challenging circumstances.  And even when things are going well, having a grateful spirit does not come naturally.  It's part of the curse of the fall.  satan convinced Eve that she was missing out on something when in fact she and Adam had been given everything they needed.  Instead of being thankful for all God had given them, she chased after the one thing that brought death.  And ever since, mankind has wrestled with this same dilemma:  am I thankful for all I have, or am I displaying an ungrateful heart by focusing on and complaining about what I don't have. 

 

In 2 Peter 1, we are told that God has given us everything we need for life and godliness!  Do I really believe this?

 

This past week has been challenging for me.  My wife has been in Missouri helping our daughter and son-in-law as they adjust to their new role as parents, enjoying and hanging out with our grandson, while I'm holding down the fort here in Pennsylvania. 

 

I know there is much to be thankful for, but it's been easier to focus on my loneliness.  I'll tell you, pity parties are ugly!  They get you nowhere profitable. 

 

I've had to choose to keep returning to thanksgiving rather than complaint.

 

So, tonight I'm choosing to rejoice

 

I'm thankful that I'm never alone.  God has promised His presence; He will never leave me or forsake me

 

I'm thankful for technology that allows me to talk to and even see my wife

 

I'm thankful for the gift of life, waking up each morning with breath in my lungs is a gift

 

I'm thankful God doesn't give me what I deserve, but as a loving Father, He gives me what I need

 

I'm thankful for friends who stand with me in my times of struggle

 

I'm thankful for God's word, my guidebook for life

 

I'm thankful for music, and its ability to lift my spirits

 

I'm thankful for the skills God has gifted me with, and the opportunities He gives me to use those skills in my own home as well as in helping others

 

I'm thankful for airplanes.  Thankful my wife will be able to fly home rather than me having to drive back out to Missouri to pick her up

 

I'm thankful for the way God has designed our bodies to rest and be refreshed

 

I'm thankful Saturday is almost here!