I’ll be honest, it’s been a day.  A Monday.  I likely should have practiced what I’ve preached and started my day with the giving of thanks.  Perhaps pausing in this moment will redirect my thoughts as we go into the evening hours.

In Streams recently I read…

Our praise will bring forth “water…in the wilderness and streams in the desert” (Isaiah 35:6), while complaining will only bring judgment.  Even prayer by itself may fail to reach the fountain of blessings.

Nothing pleases the Lord as much as praise.  There is no greater evidence of faith than the virtue of genuine thanksgiving.  Are you praising God enough?  Are you thanking Him for the countless blessings He has bestowed on you?  Are you boldly praising Him even for the trials in your life, which are actually blessings in disguise?  And have you learned to praise Him in advance for answers yet to come?

~ Streams in the Desert, May 26

Am I praising Him for Mondays and head aches and irritations?  Am I praising Him for phone calls and paperwork and bills?  I will praise Him for these things and for the promise of a new day and renewed minds, for provision, for grace, and for meeting every.single.need.  He is faithful and He is worthy of my praise.

 

1238.  girls playing in rain

1239.  youngest riding a bicycle

1240.  sleeping in (just a bit) on a Thursday

1241.  celebrations and graduations

1242.  interrupted date night

1243.  incredible hail

1244.  time on the porch

1245.  trust, faith

1246.  a perfect day for painting

1247.  support from friends

1248.  being dinner guests

1249.  no tears at swim lessons

1250.  whole house clean

1251.  finishing a book

1252.  last training run

1253.  Hospital Hill 10k!

1254.  a great friend to run it with

1255.  denim that’s worth a little extra

1256.  summer Saturdays

1257.  annual Spring Fling

1258.  Mondays

May you find the countless blessings He has given you today ~

~ Sara

After nearly a week and a half of non-routine and vacation and re-integrating to the real world, what a gift to wake up to a Monday morning and feel the return of “normal”.  Early morning quiet, a run with a friend (and almost conquering an ugly hill), Shred work out, and time in the Word to feed a very hungry soul….all feels right and I pour out thanks for the past few weeks of gifts.  God is good.  He is so good.

1206.  Resurrection Sunday

1207.  a day of baking

1208.  finding joy in food preparation

1209.  school year in the books

1210.  glorious sunshine

1211.  help grooming the dog

1212.  Haiti meeting

1213.  daughter insightful

1214.  date afternoon

1215.  sunburned shoulders

1216.  many hands working cheerfully

1217.  grace to survive on not enough sleep

1218.  five miles of pavement under my feet

1219.  snuggles with the youngest who is rapidly outgrowing my lap

1220.  family road trip

1221.  time with friends far away

1222.  long drives

1223.  hot sun, moist air

1224.  ferry ride

1225.  the beach!

1226.  all my heart in the water, laughing joy

1227.  busted bumper

1228.  too much sun

1229.  shredded car top carrier

1230.  missing keys

1231.  struggles that find us, even on vacation

1232.  stopping, as a family, to pray and give thanks, even for the difficulties

1233.  days with friends, wonderful memories

1234.  home at 4:30 a.m.

1235.  clean house

1236.  a weekend to recover

1237.  a Monday morning return to routine

I am hopeful, as we ease into summer and slower schedules, to return to more regular posting.  This week I plan to share about the comedy of errors that was our recent family vacation.  Be sure to stay tuned.  😉

May you find time this Monday morning to give thanks and find joy in the routine of daily life.

For His Glory ~

~ Sara

I steal a few minutes as the girls sleep in.  It’s late, considering we still have school this week.  But the house is quiet, so I’ll capture the moments in words.

Life has been full and my mind has been racing, fighting the urge to be overwhelmed at all that needs to be done.  With house, husband, and children that need my attention (not necessarily in that order 😉 ), plus adoption and ministry and friends, I have been praying about where blogging fits into my life right now.  I enjoy the sitting down, writing, and I enjoy it most when I do it consistently.  I am blessed when the Lord uses the hard days in my life to encourage others.  And I know, that if I don’t write here, there will be no record of our days when the girls get older.

But the Lord (and I do believe it is from Him for a purpose) has given me this pain in my shoulder.  I rarely feel it, unless I am on the computer too much.  I honestly feel that He has given it to me because it is far too easy for me to focus all of my energies on this screen and not on the life being lived all around me.  So, I have to guard my time here, or suffer the consequences later.

I really don’t know what it is I’m trying to say this morning, other than to write out where my mind and heart have been.  I will continue to be here and I hope that I can return to daily writing again soon.  But I accomplish nothing if I fight against this season I am in and insist on my own way, so I have to accept the fact that there will be days, if not weeks, when writing is limited simply because life is full.  And really, I wouldn’t have it any other way.  I am blessed beyond measure.  I ask you for grace when I disappear for a while.  Feel free to subscribe by clicking the button on the right or add me to your reader, so you are sure to not miss a post.

Today, though, I gratefully count the gifts He has so generously given….

1184.  four miles not as hard

1185.  new running shoes

1186.  computer mouse that works

1187.  sunny days

1188.  watching Emma ride

1189.  less school books

1190.  deals for next year

1191.  displays of God’s great power

1192.  an afternoon run

1193.  love letters from my girls

1194.  sunshine

1195.  stacks of new library books

1196.  fresh salsa – taste of summer

1197.  color in the flower beds

1198.  agency fees that mean she’s one step closer to being ours

1199.  re-organizing projects on the brain

1200.  that feeling that comes after working together on a hot, sunny Saturday

1201.  three miles of hills run

1202.  date night

1203.  mason jar overflowing spring

1204.  a humble King who rides on a donkey

1205.  the beginning of Holy Week, the road that brings redemption

May you find quiet moments to count the gifts He’s given today.

For His Glory ~

~ Sara

*photos from a Sunday afternoon exploring a nearby cliff

“God honors faith – stubborn faith – that sees His PROMISE and looks to that alone.  We can only imagine how bystanders today, watching these holy men of God march on, (the Levites carrying the Ark into the Promised Land) would say, ‘You will never catch me running that risk!  That ark will be swept away!’ Yet ‘the priests…stood firm on dry ground.”

“Oh, for the kind of faith that will move ahead, leaving God to fulfill His promise when He sees fit!  Fellow Levites, let us shoulder our load, without looking as though were carrying God’s coffin.  It is the ark of the living God!  Sing as you march toward the flood!”

“One of the distinguishing marks of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament church was the spirit of boldness.  One of the great essential qualities of the kind of faith that will attempt great things for God and expect great things from God is holy boldness and daring.  When dealing with a supernatural Being and taking things from Him that are humanly impossible, it is actually easier for us to take a lot than it is to take a little.  And it is easier to stand in a place of bold trust than in a place where we cautiously and timidly cling to the shore.”

~ Streams in the Desert, March 28

As I count the 1000 Gifts each day, recount them each week, I chronicle His goodness to me, to us.  I list His mercies, His blessings, even the hardships that He uses to mold and shape a mother, a family.  I slowly write a journal of faith and as I look back I see glimpses of nearly a year and a half of gift-counting, record-keeping.  Half a dozen words or less bring back a memory otherwise forgotten in the day-to-day busyness.  And as we face new trials, ones we are not in now but will surely come because in this world we will have trouble, I can come back to the record of His faithfulness and know He has not forgotten us, will not ever forget us.

Clearly seeing God’s hand in my life, recording it, gives that bold faith that allows me to carry on in the face of human impossibility.  Sharing stories gives encouragement, boldness to others.  We leave a legacy of faith by recounting what He has done, is doing in our everyday lives – the big and the small, the mundane and the significant – because for most of us, it is in the daily pressure of life that God’s grace is worked out in us.

Counting just some of the gifts of the past week and chronicling His faithfulness that gives bold faith….

1179.  the end of a long week

1180.  Friday alone with the oldest

1181.  first place painting!

1182.  dates and reconnecting

1183.  words that speak encouragement

May you be encouraged by God’s gifts to you.  May you find bold faith in His faithful love.

For His Glory ~

~ Sara

*photos of Grace with her painting for an area fine arts competition….first place for elementary acrylic painting, proud mama am I

When I was young, I always wanted a sister.  Someone I could play with, confide in, share clothes and secrets and life with.  For whatever reason, that wasn’t the Lord’s will for me.

But I was elated at the sonogram with our second pregnancy to find out that our oldest daughter would have a sister.  And I was excited again at our third….and our fourth!  (Okay, the fourth was a little anti-climactic, but I was still happy to confirm what we already assumed.  🙂 )

As I sat between all of them at church on Sunday, I thanked the Lord for the gift they are to each other and to me.  I am thankful that they have each other and that, for the most part, they enjoy one another.  It is a delight to watch them help each other, encourage each other, and even tease each other with jokes that are funny only to the six of us.  And I am thankful they have each other to learn how to live life together, living with someone who knows you well…good and bad.

I pray that as the years go by, they will be able to see the gift they have in each other, to see how richly God has blessed each of them.

I was out of the house all day yesterday, so I’m joining in a day late with the counting of the endless gifts with the Gratitude Community….

1143.  sisters for my girls

1144.  dinner with friends

1145.  Exchange City finally here

1146.  confiding in my beloved

1147.  knowing her birthdate

1148.  days that aren’t perfect

1149.  second-born playing piano lovely

1150.  watching her try to teach the youngest

May we all seek the gifts He gives each day ~

~ Sara

On this Valentine’s Day, this day of love, my life is full of people, places, and things to be thankful for.  My heart just overflows and I can’t help but give thanks to the Giver….

1099.  beginning to to get some answers

1100.  wild, abundant encouragement, support; we are blessed!

1101.  files with our name on them

1102.  God love that leaves me speechless and teary-eyed

1103.  a photo of her

1104.  dinner with a new friend who loves Haiti

1105.  lemon bars made by the ten-year-old

1106.  Cheshire moon in the middle of the night

1107.  ballet sunsets

1108.  peace

1109.  good small group discussions

1110.  friend’s new baby girl

1111.  Valentine’s Day

1112.  husband who leads

1113.  special gifts

1114.  beloved making Valentine’s dinner

1115.  daughters cleaning the kitchen

1116.  God who loves first

We love because He first loved us.

~ I John 4:19