Take Time to Smell the Coffee

The heavenly aroma of freshly brewed coffee hit me before my eyes even had a chance to open. My sister has always been an early riser and so that morning she had set herself to work making us eggs and coffee.  The smell of coffee always brings back memories of my Grandparent’s and my Aunt & Uncle’s house which always smelled of freshly ground coffee beans.  This delicious substance must be consumed no matter if I’ve been trying to get off caffeine for the past several days. It never settles well with my stomach and I usually have a hang over the next day unless I get my caffeine before the headache hits, but some days it’s so worth it.  So that morning I took my time and enjoyed each sip as I had my devotions and visited with my sister.

Most mornings I wake up in a hurry.  I speed through or completely skip breakfast in my rush to get into the day and all I have planned.  I don’t enjoy the breakfast my sister has worked hard to prepare; I scarf it down as fast as I can so that I am not late for work.  And instead of enjoying a few minutes in the morning with my siblings before we go our separate ways, I sometimes waste that time preparing for the day.  Driven by the tyranny of the urgent I miss so many simple blessings.  I need to slow down and make time to enjoy and be replenished and refreshed by life.  If I find that I simply just don’t have the extra time to do so then I need to look at my schedule and see how I can better arrange my time. Maybe I need to go to bed earlier so I can wake up earlier. Maybe I need to take less time getting ready for the day, less time stressing and rushing here and there, filling my life with many busy nothings.  We should never be so busy that we cannot take a moment to enjoy God’s blessings.

So many of us are dividing ourselves between so many different things that all we can spare the time and energy to give each project and endeavor is just a small percentage, a fraction really, of what we are truly capable of had we not accepted so many responsibilities that were not necessary for us to take on.  We are putting a strain on our whole being. Sometimes we need to say no to a few projects, a few ministries, and a few opportunities so that we can stop and really give 100% in all we do, to enjoy the results of what we’ve labored to accomplish and to be blessed by life and all that we are a part of.  God never gives us conflicting priorities.  We should not be stretched so thin by life’s demands. God gave us enough to do what He’s called us to and no more.  If we can’t bear it then perhaps we’ve taken on something that wasn’t our burden to carry, or job to fulfill, or our responsibility or relationship to fix or be involved in.

 So lately I’ve been trying to slow down, to actually life and thrive and not just survive life. I try to take it minute by minute, day by day.  We need to stop and smell the coffee and the roses.  It takes a great deal for most of us to brew a simple cup of coffee and sit down and enjoy it. We’d rather run through McDonalds and get it made for us and sometimes even then we don’t stop and enjoy the flavor and aroma.  Likewise, we rush through life and don’t even notice the roses let alone smell them.

So in my thankfulness journal I have begun writing down even the very simplest pleasures that I am truly grateful for and it helps me notice and enjoy them even more.  I start looking for blessings and it helps me slow down and take life one moment at a time.

Here are a few of my blessings this week:

1. Being able to visit, laugh, play music, & cook together with Marianne.
2. Spend time with my little brother & sister.
3. The beautiful quilt on my bed which my brother gave me for Christmas
4. Singing to the residents at the nursing home & seeing their faces light up as I talk with them.
5. The Prayer shawl from my Aunt Donna
6. Being able to get off work early & make enough money in tips to cover a bill.
7. An encouraging Facebook wall post from a friend
8. My sister’s amazing lemon bars
9. Cappuccino Chunky Chocolate ice cream & waffle cones!
10. My sister’s strange but hilarious sense of humor which helps me lighten up.

Now it's your turn.  What are some simple, special, meaningful things that you are grateful for?  Take time to notice and enjoy each one.

Receive, Give Thanks & Testify!

I was encouraged by this post which I found on the following link; http://christiananswers.net/q-eden/thanks-david.html  I thought I'd pass it along for you to reflect upon this week.

God is great and worthy of praise - Psalm 18:3, 48:1, 96:4, 145:3

SOME THINGS TO THANK GOD FOR:

• God's righteousness and holiness - Psalm 7:17, 30:4, 48:10, 71:16, 24, 99:3
• All God's marvelous works - Psalm 9:1, 66:3-7, 71:16-17, 72:18, 92:4-6, 105:5, 111:2-4
• Your body - Psalm 139:14-16
• God's guidance and instruction to you - Psalm 16:7, 48:14, 71:17
• The hope God has given you - Psalm 16:9
• Salvation - Psalm 16:9-11, 71:23, 92:1, 96:2
• The joy God gives you in His presence - Psalm 16:11
• When you were in trouble, God heard your cries for help - Psalm 18:6, 22:24
• Deliverance - Psalm 18:49, 54:7, 68:20
• Mercy and kindness - 117:2 , Psalm 18:49, 31:21, 57:10, 86:13, 100:5, 106:1, 108:4, 145:8-9
• For not staying angry with us and not giving up on us - Psalm 30:5
• God's blessings and benefits - Psalm 68:19
• God's laws and commands - Psalm 19:7-8, 48:11, 112:1
• God's judgements and the warning they have provided to you - Psalm 19:9-11, 119:7, 119:164
• God's power - Psalm 21:13, 29:3-10
• Faithfulness - 71:22
• For the strength and confidence God gives you - Psalm 27:1-6, 28:7-8, 29:11, 56:4, 11, 138:3
• For listening to your prayers - Psalm 28:6, 66:20, 116:1-2
• God's Word- Psalm 56:4, 56:10
• For filling the earth with His love and goodness - Psalm 33:5

SOME WAYS TO THANK & PRAISE GOD:

• Do it with your mouth, not just your mind - Psalm 51:15, 63:5, 66:8, 66:17, 71:8, 15, 24, 105:2, 109:30, 119:171-172, 145:21
• Seek God, thirst for Him - Psalm 22:26, 42:2, 63:8, 105:4
• Thank God continuously - Psalm 71:6, 8, 14-15, 75:9, 79:13, 92:1-2, 115:18, 145:2
• Tell people about God's wondrous works - Psalm 26:7, 96:3
• Thank and praise God in front of your brothers and sisters in the congregation, among many people- Psalm 22:22, 25, 26:12, 35:18, 68:26, 111:1, 116:19
• Among the unsaved of all nations, thank and praise God - Psalm 18:49, 57:9, 96:10, 108:3
• Praise God to the next and all generations - 79:13, 102:18, 145:4
• Sing praises to God, sing with understanding, and make it glorious - Psalm 7:17, 47:7, 66:2, 66:4, 9:2, 27:6, 28:7, 57:9, 61:8, 63:7, 68:4, 32, 69:30, 71:22-23, 92:1, 96:2, 101:1, 104:33, 105:2, 135:3, 146:2
  Even sing for joy in your bed Psalm 149:5
• Do it with all your heart - Psalm 9:1, 86:12, 111:1, 138:1
• Be glad and rejoice in God - Psalm 9:2
• Fear God, honor Him, glorify Him, revere Him - Psalm 22:23
• Love and respect God's house - Psalm 26:8, 138:2
• Play musical instruments to praise God, and do it skillfully - Psalm 33:2-3, 43:4, 71:22, 92:3, 149:3, 150:3-5
• Shout for joy, rejoice - Psalm 33:3
• Be creative in your praise (write or sing God a NEW song, not always the same old one) - Psalm 33:3, 149:1
• Stand in awe of Him - Psalm 33:8
• Remember and praise God's names - Psalm 44:8, 45:17, 54:6
• Lift up your hands to Him - Psalm 63:4
• Think about God at night - Psalm 63:6
• Encourage other to praise and thank God - Psalm 67:3-5

After reading the Psalmists' instruction, it would be wise to ask ourselves: Do our lives truly express thankfulness to God? Or are we numbered among those are living a life of ingratitude, failing to act like we understand who God really is and what he has done?

Questions:

• Are YOU thankful to God? Please post your thanks as a comment in order to encourage others!

So Much To Be Thankful For

I was listening to Josh Groban’s song, “Thankful” today.  It’s not a song for the Thanksgiving Holidays.  In fact, it’s actually on his Christmas album “Noel”.  However, in my opinion, it is a song that should be played year round.  The lyrics are very thought provoking and a great reminder to take time in the middle of your hectic lives to put down the cell phones, lap tops, and all digital devices and look around you and observe your surroundings. 
Do you notice the people around you who are suffering, lonely, deprived, friendless, homeless, jobless, and in pain?  It helps us put things into perspective when we see what others are going through and it helps us realize how much we have to be grateful for.  Look at all the blessings that you rush by ever day in your hurry to get to work, school, church, activities, concerts, conferences, etc…  You have so much to be thankful for, but can you see it?

Perhaps we do realize our blessings and that we are much better off than the guy on the street.  But once you realize that, are you selfish and keep all the blessings and joys of life to yourself or do you share them openly with those around you? 

If you have a steady income how much of that is being invested, if any, to bless others?  Remember it is more blessed to give then to receive.

If you have more friends then you know what to do with, ask yourself; “Am I giving or taking in these relationships?”  If I have so much coming in then I should have almost an equal amount going out.  We should never get to the place where we have no time for others or no desire to befriend others because we don’t need any more friends.  Whether or not you need friends, have you considered the fact that someone else might need your friendship? 

The world doesn’t revolve around you.  Start trying to think about others more than yourself.  Make time in your schedule to reach out on a personal basis. Think about trying to bless rather than to be blessed.  Try to reach out beyond your comfort zone to the old, young, church goers, sinners, popular, unpopular, aged, invalid, mentally disabled, broken, weary, and the needy.

The second commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself; your neighbor is EVERYONE God puts in your path.  If you can take you can give.  Even when you are in the middle of a crisis, think of others who may have been through or are going through the same and seek to minister and sympathize rather than becoming self-focused and full of self pity.  Get your focus off yourself and onto someone else.

If you find this difficult to do or hard to find the time, energy, money, etc… perhaps you are striving for something a little too big or trying to do it on your own strength.  God will always give you enough strength for the tasks He has assigned you to.  There are a million and one little ways you can touch someone’s life by doing and spending very little.  So be creative!  You can bless on a much smaller level and work up to greater things.

God never asks you to love yourself and look after number one before anything else.  He says; “Keep your eyes on me, keep your heart in submission to me, love others and trust me to take care of the rest.”  If you do this, you will see God’s blessing upon your life time and time again. You will have so much to thank Him for that you won’t be able to hold it all inside, you’ll just have to share it with others.

So bless and be blessed, give whether or not you receive and give thanks for the opportunity to give back all that has been given to you.  

Take a moment to observe the blessings around you.  Once you've done this, please leave me a comment and let me know how you are being blessed and how you plan to return the blessing to others.

Listen To Josh's Song Here!

God Encounters

There were many things to be grateful for this week.  The Lord was moving in miraculous ways and it was amazing to feel His Spirit at work in the lives of those around me.  It had been another long and exhausting week however I had once again felt God’s power sustaining me. 

Over the weekend I was out of town for a conference along with several sisters and a friend. I spent many long hours on the road which gave me time to think and reflect on the past week.  Out my window I observed miles and miles of flat fields of dried wheat and corn, the brooding sky with brilliant rays of sunshine spilling through the cracks in the clouds, the distant flash of lightning and sheets of rain, the rolling hills which were dotted with cows, horses, sheep, and a lone fox ambling over the dry turf.  Such simple pleasures can bring a calm and peace as you take it all in and I couldn’t wait to go home and record each blessing in my journal.  I took a moment right then to thank the Lord for them and then sat again in silence and absorbed it all.  True, Kansas is not one of the most scenic, breathtaking, or awe-inspiring states but it has its own simple beauty.  There is beauty in all of God’s creation but sometimes you have to search hard to find it.

We reached our destination very late at night.  Our group got very little sleep due to some unfortunate circumstances however; once again the Lord sustained us and kept us safe and awake for the conference and the long drive home. 

I wasn’t sure what to expect that day at the conference. I have looked forward to it with mixed feelings for the past several months and now it had arrived.  God definitely showed up that day in many unexpected ways.  The conference was incredible and I was moved to tears as I worshiped the Lord together with other believers and felt the presence and pleasure of the Lord so strongly.  I heard Him speaking clearly to me through what the speakers shared and was challenged to pursue an even deeper relationship with the Lord, learned to be content and accepting of where God has me now, trusting in Him to move me on and direct me in His timing, a purpose to do the ordinary things extraordinarily well, and encouraged to finally see other believers with the same passion and knowing I am not alone on this journey. 

The most amazing moment by far was when I was privileged and blessed beyond words to witness over seventy people come to know the Lord and join the body of Christ.  All the memories of my salvation day came flooding back and I felt the joy of my salvation wash over me once more as if I had just been reborn all over again. I could hardly contain my joyful tears as I stood with the body of Christ, old timers and new comers alike, and declared that Jesus Christ is Lord as we applauded, praised, and gave Him all the glory due His name.  What a memorable moment, one which I will never forget.  I wanted to hug all those who had just become part of God’s family.  I wanted to welcome them and rejoice with them. 

Though the speakers were just human beings like any of us, it was so inspiring to see them not only living up to their god-given potential but also in a meek and humble spirit drawing and encouraging others to do the same.  And unlike most renowned speakers, they did not keep to themselves and avoid direct contact with their audience.  Instead they interacted as much as they could and made time to stoop down and come along side us all, listening to our stories, questions, fears, and dreams, as they prayed, rejoiced, cried, comforted, and encouraged us.  They spoke to us as fellow brothers and sisters in the faith who they were honored to walk along side in this challenging journey.  And when you spoke with these men you could sense God’s spirit inside them so strongly, so genuinely and so passionately that it brought to mind the words in Luke 24:32 “Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?”  However, it was not these men who were the vessels worthy of worship and honor; it was who inhabited these vessels.  They had merely allowed God’s spirit to fill them to overflowing and because of that He had blessed their ministry and transformed their lives and they could not help but shine His light.  I wish I could sense God’s Spirit more often in people as strongly as I did then.  After being so discouraged by the spiritual depravity of the youth and others in my community, seeing their love and passion for Christ was like a breath of fresh air.  It gave me hope that there are others out there fighting the good fight and boldly proclaiming the truth. 

I will be forever grateful for that God-encounter and I pray that my life and the lives of all who attended that conference will be forever and eternally impacted by these men’s lives and that we would all be genuinely changed and filled not with emotion, but with a spiritual, lasting and effective passion for Christ. 

Lord, may my life be such a reflection of Christ that others will feel your presence like never before and that their hearts would be stirred and drawn closer and encouraged and challenged in their walk with you.  May I be your handmaid, humble and meek.  And when they ask of the hope that is within me, I pray I will always give you all the glory.

Did you have any God-encounters this week that you would like to share?  Any simple or great blessings that spoke and ministered to your heart?  What are you grateful for this week? 

Live It!

As I was driving through town yesterday with my sisters I saw a vehicle with a license plate which read, “GVTHNX”.  This naturally got me to thinking about this blog and the purpose behind it which is to give thanks to God for all his blessings.  It made me smile to see the license plate and it made me think, how often do we publically show our thankfulness to God?  Do we profess to be truly grateful inwardly but outwardly we are grumbling and showing a heart full of ingratitude for the blessings God has given us? 

Someone I know, who does not know the Lord, recently posted a facebook status with the scripture in Matthew which talks about knowing a tree by its fruit.  This person was holding others accountable to something which they were not living out themselves however, it proves a point.  Even the world knows the real from the phony merely by observing the fruit of their life.  If we say we are grateful in our hearts shouldn’t our actions show it? 

We truly have so much to be thankful for.  How are we showing our gratitude to those around us?  Let us not merely show it in our words but also practice it and live it out daily in our actions! 

Stop and ask yourself this question today: Am I living my life in thankfulness to God in such a way that it draws those around me to focus on God and all he has done for them or is my spirit of ingratitude poisoning my life and others?

Please take a moment to leave a comment and tell me what you are grateful for this week.