Give thanks to the Lord!

Happy American Thanksgiving!
We say "I give thanks for..." a lot today and on the days leading up to this holiday.  We focus on the things in our lives that are blessings, that we are grateful for. And that is a wonderful focus.  Yet, I wonder how often we say, "I give thanks to God for..."?  What a difference those two little words make in my heart when I udder them.  "to God".  For all I have comes from Him, so all my thanks should be directed towards Him.  Try it.  Today, on Thanksgiving Day.  Give thanks to the Lord.
Psalm 136

 ¹ Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good.
       His love endures forever.
 ² Give thanks to the God of gods.
       His love endures forever.
 ³ Give thanks to the Lord of lords:
       His love endures forever.
 ⁴ to him who alone does great wonders,
       His love endures forever.
 ⁵ who by his understanding made the heavens,
       His love endures forever.
 ⁶ who spread out the earth upon the waters,
       His love endures forever.
 ⁷ who made the great lights—
       His love endures forever.
 ⁸ the sun to govern the day,
       His love endures forever.
 ⁹ the moon and stars to govern the night;
       His love endures forever.
 ¹⁰ to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt
       His love endures forever.
 ¹¹ and brought Israel out from among them
       His love endures forever.
 ¹² with a mighty hand and outstretched arm;
       His love endures forever.
 ¹³ to him who divided the Red Sea asunder
       His love endures forever.
 ¹⁴ and brought Israel through the midst of it,
       His love endures forever.
 ¹⁵ but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea;
       His love endures forever.
 ¹⁶ to him who led his people through the desert,
       His love endures forever.
 ¹⁷ who struck down great kings,
       His love endures forever.
 ¹⁸ and killed mighty kings—
       His love endures forever.
 ¹⁹ Sihon king of the Amorites
       His love endures forever.
 ²⁰ and Og king of Bashan—
       His love endures forever.
 ²¹ and gave their land as an inheritance,
       His love endures forever.
 ²² an inheritance to his servant Israel;
       His love endures forever.
 ²³ to the One who remembered us in our low estate
       His love endures forever.
 ²⁴ and freed us from our enemies,
       His love endures forever.
 ²⁵ and who gives food to every creature.
       His love endures forever.
 ²⁶ Give thanks to the God of heaven.
       His love endures forever.

I give thanks to the Almighty.

     His love endures forever.

to the One who gave me a loving & faithful husband, who leads our family with Godly wisdom,

     His love endures forever.

to Him who gave us the gift of three amazing miracles who bring us great joy each moment of their lives.

     His love endures forever.

I give thanks to the Great I Am.

     His love endures forever.

to the One who provided friends in a far away land,

     His love endures forever.

to Him who holds family and friends tightly together though miles separate,

     His love endures forever.

I give thanks to the Perfect Promise Keeper,

     His love endures forever.

to the one who give grace & mercy abundantly and loves extravagantly.

     His love endures forever.

I give thanks to the God of heaven.

     His love endures forever.

another bright idea

It was not one of my better ideas.  The kids had come home from school, we finished homework, tutoring, violin practice & I had the bright idea that with still a couple hours until dinner, we could go run a "quick" errand to get a baby gift and save me the trip the next day.  This had "bad idea" stamped all over it.
I briefed the tired-from-school children about the proper way to behave while in a cute baby boutique.  (boutique?  yes, my idea just kept getting worse)  We covered all important topics, including keeping hands to yourself, walking, no hide-and-seek, no shadow light-saber fights, quiet voices, no touching ANYTHING.  All bases appeared covered, children smiled and agreed to the "rules" and we headed in.
*
I will stop here to say that my children are generally well-behaved, manner minding little folks.  However, they are children.  And after a long day of school, homework, tutoring, violin practice they really just want to run around the yard or the house playing.  The VERY last thing they want to do (or should be doing) is walking like little adults through a baby boutique.  I was seriously a few sandwiches short of a picnic on this one.
*
Back to the story...
Every single rule covered in the pre-boutique car briefing was forgotten within 3 minutes of entering the shop.  Hands were touching merchandise, hands were touching each other, voices were not indoor approved, hide-and seek was quickly put to a halt, light-sabering went on behind me and there was running.  Oh the horror.  The glances from the women who either don't have children or whom were smart enough to leave them home with the nanny (where is my nanny anyway?)  were sharp and disapproving.
After each offense, I would quietly and calmly *surrrre* remind the kids of the rules and command them to "stop it!"  Each time they would look at me with those adorable, innocent, "I-came-from-your-womb" eyes and say, "I'm sorry, Mommy."  This phase, complete with the look was repeated at least a half a dozen times on this adventure.
Finally I had had enough.  Enough!  Enough!  I looked at my adorable, driving-me-nuts offspring and said, "Enough!  I don't want you to say you're sorry anymore!  I want you to change your behavior!"
OOOOWWWWWW

"Yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death."  2 Corinthians 7:9-10

talkin' about Thursday

Today over at My Cup 2 Yours, the Talkin' about Thursday topic is good reads.  I have several favorites on my list, but really my very, very, very favorites are those classics that we read together with the kids.  over and over and over and over... This book "You are Special, along with the entire series of Wemmick stories, is an absolute, all time favorite.  Written by Max Lucado, it is a brilliantly written and illustrated book with an excellent message.

 

If you're curious, check out this reading with illustrations.  It's not great quality, but the story is complete.

To check out many other wonderful reads, head on over to My Cup 2 Yours.

God is perfect

But you are to be PERFECT, even as your Father in heaven is PERFECT. Matthew 5:48

God is perfect. Jesus is perfect. Unlike you and me, Jesus lived his life on this planet as a perfect human. Honestly, I think this has always tripped me up a bit. Not that he was perfect, I have no trouble with that, just what exactly 'perfect' looks like.

Perfect, in my mind, tends to be the woman at the PTA meeting whose hair, make-up and wardrobe are put together in such a manner that at any moment a picture could be taken of her and that photo would show her to be flawless in her appearance. Perfect, to me, was the homemaker whose home was beautifully kept, clean, organized, well decorated. The rooms of her home appeared like pages from the latest catalog or magazine. Perfect was the mom whose children were neat, without smears and smudges on their faces, with tidy rooms and organized playrooms. Her schedule was well-kept, with stimulating activities always planned to promote the proper development of her children. Having life put together in such a way that from the outside, from the onlookers perspective, all appeared flawless, easy, controlled. And somehow the stories of Jesus from Scripture do not paint a picture of him as this image of perfection. But nonetheless, that image to me, was perfection.

That, to God, has absolutely nothing to do with perfection.

Jesus' perfection had nothing to do with appearances. Jesus' perfection had everything to do with will. Jesus chose God's will perfectly over his own, over and over and over again. Jesus determined, through the lens of his human eyes, each decision he faced and each time he perfectly chose the Father's will. Not once, not a single time, did he select his own desires above God's. He may have wanted to, he may have had an incredibly difficult time deciding to follow the will of God. He may have imagined the pain, the fear, the embarrassment, the anguish that lie ahead, but in the end he always set his own will, his own fears, his own desire to receive the approval of others, aside and lived out the will of God. This is perfection. Jesus was perfect.

And he has instructed us to be perfect as well. Not to have a perfect appearance, not have a perfectly organized life with every detail in our control. The cross, my friends, did not look like a controlled life to those looking on. It was not neat, it was not clean, but it was PERFECT. The challenge we face is to live God's will perfectly. And we cannot do it by ourselves. Self-righteousness is just that 'self'. We can only be made righteous through the perfectly spilled blood of Jesus. We need God! We can tidy our lives, appear to have everything under control, live life only reflecting the stuff that looks perfect, but true perfection only comes from letting go and letting God's desire for our life take over. Sometimes it will look beautiful to the onlooker and sometimes it will look like uncontrolled chaos.

Do not misunderstand me. I am not saying that we should live in complete and udder chaos. With dirty homes and dirty children and messy everything. But there is a balance. We must be authentic with one another. We must show the areas that are really hard to follow the will of God. We must be willing to let the curtain fall on our "perfect show". We have to be willing to share with one another where we find it hard to follow the will of God, where we struggle to let God take control. We must be willing to build each other up and to do that, we must let our imaginary world of perfection die.

Listen closely to the words of the song today. There's no such thing as perfect people.

Proverbs 10

OK so I'm feeling completely like JimBob Duggar.  Today, being the 10th of the month, I decided to read through the 10th Chapter of Proverbs.  You see, as JimBob would tell you, there are 31 chapters in the book of Proverbs. Enough for one per day in most months.  So, if you are looking for wisdom (which is what Proverbs is) then a Proverb a day keeps the foolishness away.  (yes, I just made that up...geek, I know)

Proverbs 10:19 - Too much talk leads to sin.  Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.

Does this mean that I can't talk?  My mouth must stay closed?  Should I lock myself away from the world and be silent?  *I hear my family laughing at the thought of me being silent right now*

Of course we can't stay silent.  We must speak.  But too much speaking leads to sin.  Ever talked just to have something to say?  I have.  (many times)  And what usually comes out in those spewings is not thoughtful, uplifting, encouraging, truthful...

Proverbs 10:32 - The lips of the godly speak helpful words, but the mouth of the wicked speaks perverse words.

I would love to say that in order to make sure the words we speak are helpful words, we simple need to try really hard.  Unfortunately that seldom works for long.  The trouble with our mouths is that they are directly connected to our hearts.  And until our hearts are right, our words will never consistently be either.

Luke 6:45b - What you say flows from what is in your heart.

May I choose to fill my heart with patience and kindness, gentleness and joy, goodness and love so that what flows from my mouth with be likewise.

ps - I love the Duggars

beautiful mess

A great friend over at the Johnson 4 has a great post today.  A recap of sorts of 2009.  I especially love this post because it is so real.  Nothing fake, nothing false, nothing masked.  It's a look into her authentic, real, raw life.  Where God's working, what she's learning, how life's changing.  I just love that this post is genuine.

How often do we live masked?  How often do we not share our struggles, our troubles, our difficulties?  Even with those who are our sisters (& brothers) in Christ?  Too often.  Somehow it seems that to reveal flaws, mistakes, mess-ups, hang-ups, problems, difficulties, struggles, would also be to reveal weakness.

"But he has said to me, 'my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.'  Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weakness, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.  For when I am weak, then I am strong."  2 Corinthians 12:9-10

A song I love...
"Ah, but you're the one who looks at me and sees who I was meant to be.  More than just a beautiful mess."
Thankful He sees more than just a beautiful mess :)

if it pleases...

Do what pleases you, as long as you're not hurting anyone else. What difference does it make? What on earth matter is it of yours anyway? If I feel good about it?

Ever heard this? I have. It's a fairly common thought. And really? Seriously? If what I'm doing is making me happy, behind closed doors in the comfort of my very own home and I'm not hurting anyone else...then why should it matter?

Finally, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you in the name of the Lord Jesus to live in a way that pleases God.  1 Thessalonians 4:1

Did you catch that last little part? Live in a way that pleases God. Even if it pleases me just fine and no one else in the entire world can see, if it doesn't please God, then I'm "urged" not to do it. "Urged" here is just another way of saying "instructed".
 Of course, we can't be responsible for the way that everyone else is living their lives, determining whether they're living to please God or please themselves or please their neighbor or mother or friend or... We can only take responsibility for what we're doing. I can only look into my own life and decide if the way I'm walking is pleasing to God.  (and that's a big enough job, I'd say)

Everything I do, whether in front of a large crowd (as if that ever happens) or completely alone (also, as if that ever happens), should be done only if it pleases God. But what pleases God? I have an aching feeling that the scripture has plenty to say on that. stay tuned...

no faults? really?

For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ's blood on the cross.

This includes __________ who was once far away from God. ________ was God's enemy, separated from God by (his/her) evil thoughts & actions. Yet now he has reconciled _________ to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, God has brought ___________ into his presence, and _________ is holy & blameless as (he/she) stands before him without a single fault.

But ________must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don't drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News.

Colossians 1:19-23a

They're gone.  Evil thoughts & actions -washed white as snow.  Not because of deeds, not because of works, not because of tithes or offerings...but only by the blood of Jesus.

ps - had to have that song today... makes me think of my Grandpa Shorty.

being glad - anchored in hope

1 Peter goes on to say "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials."

I don't think it's an accident that Peter tells us first to put our hope in the mercy granted us by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, in the inheritance that is waiting for us that we cannot yet see & cannot be lost in verses 4 & 5. After he details where our hope should lie, then he tells us to rejoice in trials. I think Peter knew we could not find joy in trials without anchoring our hope first in the unfailing promise provided through Christ. If we put our hope in "stuff" or other people or position or dreams or expectations for our life, then when a trial threatens that thing, it threatens our hope, and there is likely no rejoicing. But if our hope is in Christ - nothing can take Christ, nothing can take our inheritance. Nothing. Whatever trial we face, our hope remains unchanged because Christ remains. Grieve? yes. Weep? surely. But lose hope? impossible if it is anchored in Christ.