Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Day 41

I love to celebrate... whether it's a birthday or a holiday, an accomplishment or a win... celebrating is so much fun to me.  I am an extrovert, so this may not be too surprising.  And today was a day of celebration!  My sons both made it to school extra early... with amazing positive attitudes to boot.  My garage door was having major issues this morning and I called my friend to tell her I was running late and asked her to help me pray about it... and our prayers were answered.  I went to a Christmas Tea for a mom's group that I attend and it was so much fun.  We shared Christmas traditions and memories, played a game and just got to relax together.  And I attended a staff luncheon too where we celebrated everything God has done at our church over the past year. 

My celebrations went beyond these things...I also got to celebrate with others.  First, a dear friend finished her first college final and got the most amazing surprise from her professor... she only had to answer one question because of all her hard work throughout this challenging course!  God rewarded her perseverance and commitment.  If you've got questions about the Old Testament, she's your girl!  It was so fun to celebrate this milestone with her.  I'm super proud of her amazing positive attitude and how she trusts and listens to God's leading... and is rewarded for her obedience with little surprises along the way.

Then, I got a text from an amazing gal who is so special to me.  She is experiencing Romans 8:28 in her life:  And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.  To hear her story and how the timing perfectly syncs up with my own story just blew me away.  And not only did I get to talk to her on the phone, she had time to shop a bit with me.  I loved getting to celebrate how God is revealing His plan and purpose for her life. 

Wanna know about the icing on the cake?  It was sunny after a series of gray and wet days.  It was like God was sending sunshine to make the celebration even better.  God was raining down the blessings today, not only on me, but also on so many others who are near and dear to my heart.

So today, I want to wrap up the celebration with David's Psalm of Thanks.  You wanna know why this fits so perfectly?  It's because David gave this Psalm of Thanks to the Lord after the ark of the covenant was returned to the City of David.  This was a monumental occasion and David, the King, was so delighted that he danced and celebrated (1 Chronicles 15:29).  The King was doing a happy dance because of what God did, so we're entitled to do happy dances too.  It counts as exercise, I promise! 

Here's some of the words David spoke to God after the celebration:

Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known among the nations what he has done.  Sing to Him, sing praise to Him; tell of all His wonderful acts.   Glory to His holy name, let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.  Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.  Remember the wonders He has done, His miracles, and the judgments He pronounced...  Psalm 16:8-12  http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=1Ch&c=16&v=8&t=NIV#8

Take time to celebrate your blessings.  Break into a random happy dance.  Sing some praise and worship songs at the top of your lungs.  Jump for joy.  God loves it when we celebrate with a thankful heart... and we truly have so much to be thankful for. 

Today, I am thankful for...

1.  My jingle bell bracelet and how it caused my three year old to break into song
2.  Getting the boys to school extra early
3.  God answering the prayers for my garage door to work
4.  Christmas tea
5.  Learning new Christmas traditions to try out
6.  Celebrating a final that is finally over... and God's surprise that brought such joy to my friend
7.  Celebrating God working in another friend's life
8.  My mom watching my three year old
9.  Christmas shopping extravaganza - sans kiddos!
10.  Homemade spaghetti made by my mom - who's an absolutely amazing cook!
11.  Cousins playing together
12.  Sunshine
13.  Chasing down Firetruck Santa and finding him much to the delight of my boys
14.  Getting a chance to let God know that I appreciate His blessings in my life
15.  New ornaments for the Christmas tree
16.  Phone chats that brighten my day

Here's to 10,000 reasons... Only 5,530 to go...

11 comments:

  1. I am thankful for...
    1. God's faithfulness when we seek Him
    2. Time with God that was clearly planned by Him
    3. Finally finishing a much needed CPE
    4. Getting things done before kiddos were awake in the morning
    5. A warm shower
    6. A husband to help me get kiddos ready to get out of the house ON TIME
    7. A Christmas tea
    8. Incredible ladies saying "yes" to God by leading an encouraging moms group at church
    9. Spending time with adults
    10. Someone giving my arms a break by offering to hold my son
    11. My daughter's excitement when we pull into church
    12. Awesome Christmas cookies
    13. Individuals supporting the Community Clubhouse during the Christmas season
    14. Strawberry milkshakes from Dairy Queen
    15. Laughing with my husband
    16. Clean clothes and diapers
    17. Pancake making with two 2 year olds and a 5 year old
    18. The joy and laughter of kiddos in the kitchen
    19. The awesome mess that can be made because if such fun
    20. Sticky fingers and faces smiling
    21. Supporting friends that love me for me
    22. A willing husband to help clean up the mess
    23. Prayer warriors
    24. Friends to hold me accountable because they want to see me be near to God
    25. Cell phones and chargers close by
    26. Conversations that could last for hours
    27. The most sleep had consecutively in 12 weeks
    28. God's unchanging word
    29. Romans 8:28
    30. Ephesians 3:20

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  2. I am thankful for
    1.My granddaughter feeling better.
    2.Getting dessert made before picking up my grandson from
    school.
    3.Both granchildren taking a nap.
    4.Getting my spaghetti made before they woke up.
    5.The grandchildren playing well together.
    6.Watching them play and laughing.
    7.A family dinner the kids even liked.(2 weeks in a row.)
    8.Hearing the decorated Firetruck with Santa going through
    the neighborhood.
    9.All the grandchildre getting candy from the firemen.
    10.Santa sitting on top of the firetruck sayin HO HO HO
    Merry Christmas.
    11.All the other children on our street wating for Santa and
    singing Christmas carols while waiting.
    Gina

    ReplyDelete
  3. 1. Backups!
    2. Highlighters
    3. All upcoming 12/12/12 chatter today
    4. My Knicks
    5. Chuck E Cheese
    6. All the Holiday office Candy
    7. It's cold but not extremely cold
    8. Online Storage
    9. The upcoming challenges of a new day
    10.Eating Fudge for Breakfast

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thankful for...
    1. Chats with my mom
    2. Christmas sugar cookies
    3. Fun ways to surprize my boys
    4. Solutions to my son's forgetfulness (coming from my own experience with the very same thing)
    5. Different accents and languages - facinating
    6. The energy to clean
    7. My husband - just in general, for everything
    8. Christmas hymns
    9. Videos of the boys when they were babies
    10. My boys being glad to buy presents for other people
    Meredith B.

    ReplyDelete
  5. 1. I'm thankful that the first words to pop into my brain this morning were "I will never leave you nor forsake you." It seems to be the theme this week. I'm thankful God's words are hidden in my heart because my memory isn't the greatest these days. :)
    2. I'm thankful for Carly singing Frosty the Snowman on the walk to the bus stop. it lightened my heart.
    3. It was frosty outside and the chill of the air livened me up a bit. I'm thankful for that too.
    4. I'm thankful that Jeff started my car to warm it.
    5. That we are going to make Nisu, a Finnish bread, for the first time. It is a tradition in Jeff's family.
    6. That all the Christmas cards are addressed,stamped, and in the mail for work - all 140 cards!
    7. Butternut squash soup.
    8. The women of WOW.Looking forward to the potluck.
    9. Christmas music on the radio.
    10.That we celebrate Christ's birth.
    11.I'm thankful for Jesus' sacrifice for us.
    12.That we can recognize God's work in our lives and in the lives of others.
    Debbie

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  6. Purple Pam

    Thankful for:
    1) Getting Tiff's ID renewed.
    2) A fun day with my Tiff & my sister.
    3) taking Dad to Lights under Louisville
    4) the 1st sign we see at 'Lights' is "KEEP CHRIST IN CHRISTMAS!"
    5) fun evening with family.
    6) hope, it's always there.
    7) seeing my Gboy's brain work & grow.
    8) honestly being able to laugh at the world ending on the 21st.
    9) honestly NOT being afraid if it does.
    10) Peace, cause I know Jesus!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I am thankful for:
    1. the power of the name of God
    2. serving my daughter dinner on the "You are special" plate to celebrate all her hard work
    3. the opportunity to offer someone helpful advice - which they gladly received
    4. a letter from a difficult relative that did not contain ugliness - Thank you dear Lord
    5. an unexpected phone call from my uncle and a chance to visit with him
    6. pretty sunshine
    7. humor and laughter

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  8. AmandaL .
    I'm thankful for the courageous study.
    I'm thankful for the party tonight at church.
    I'm thankful for for talking to a woman new at church.
    I'm thankful for sausage cheese balls.
    I'm thankful for the warm sunshine today.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I am thankful that-
    1.Most the conversations I had today went very well.
    2.I've grown a thicker skin the last 6 years.
    3.GOD knows my heart and my intentions.
    4.I have such a loving and lively cheering section :-)
    5. I got to overhear my husband sing "only water " by- Brandon Heath, without him knowing ( I thought my heart would explode with pride of the man GOD is growing him into.
    6. GOD saved me for a purpose and gives me the strength to keep movin forward.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I am thankful for:
    1. finishing all my finals and projects at school
    2. Christmas parties at school
    3. getting to eat dinner on the "you are special plate"-thanks mom! :)
    4. a sunny day
    5. that todays date is 12/12/12- how cool is that!

    ReplyDelete
  11. 1. Trust in God
    2. A simple solution to a broken phone
    3. Understanding boss
    4. Catching up with an old friend
    5. Prayer with friends
    6. My office job that allows me to just chill when I feel like crud
    7. Medication
    8. Forgiveness
    9. 4 hour shifts
    10. Encouragement

    ReplyDelete