This blog is designed to create community for believers and provide support for seekers. I encourage all readers to share their faith in an effort to lift and encourage one another.
On this chilly afternoon, I am so thankful for a cup of hot tea (tangerine orange, yum!) some warm chocolate chip cookies, a soft, fuzzy blanket, and a good book to read.
Lord, sometimes life is hard. Today, I thank you for the simple pleasures that make life enjoyable.
On this beautiful November day, (the 8th) I am thankful for books. I’m amazed at how versatile books are. They can transport me to another time or place, teach me new things, make me laugh and cry, and reveal the heart of God.
Pictured are some of the wonderful books I have recently read.
Thank you, Lord, for so many wonderful gifts you have given me. In addition to your amazing spiritual gifts, I am so grateful for the gift of books. You know what joy it gives me to read them, and how I enjoy getting to know you better through your holy Word.
On this Friday, November 7, I am thankful for friends. People you can have fun with, who will cry with you in your grief, and support you in hard times. I’m thankful for friends who will pray with you and for you.
Thank you, Lord, for sending us friends who keep us focused on you.
Happy Friday, everyone! I hope you have a wonderful day and a blessed weekend.
The mountains are so majestic. They make me think of the amazing power of God.
Psalm 34: 8-9
“Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
Fear the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing.”
Lord, you are more amazing and more majestic than the mighty peaks of the Rockies. Thank you for your willingness to provide for all my needs and for your amazing grace.
In this month of giving thanks, what are you thankful for? Today, I’m thankful for the rain that falls and nourishes our crops and plants. I love listening to it beat a tune on the roof, or standing on the porch, watching it come down. I also love watching moisture come down in the winter, in the form of snow. My summer loving friends (you know who you are!) think I’m crazy, but I love to watch the snow fall. When the sunlight hits, it looks like diamonds. So pretty.
Job 37: 15-16 “Do you know how God controls the clouds and makes his lightning flash? Do you know how the clouds hang poised, those wonders of him who has perfect knowledge?”
Lord, thank you for controlling the clouds, the rain and the snow. Thank you for their beauty and for allowing them to keep our plants flourishing.
It’s Thanks giving month, yet I still need this sweet reminder. I need it every month, every day.
Isn’t it funny that we need a day, one day of the year to celebrate giving thanks? Perhaps it would be better and certainly healthier to give thanks every day. What if, even on our worst days, we found at least one thing to be thankful for?
Lord God, You have giving me so many good things, yet I do not give thanks as often as I should. Teach me to be thankful in all things and to give you thanks every day. Teach me to look for ways to be thankful and give you praise.
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” Psalms 100: 4-5
Have a beautiful, thanks-filled Thursday!
Today, November 5th, I am thankful for the amazing variety of animals that God has created. From the lion to the tiny kitten, from the giraffe to the bunny, from the eagle to the hummingbird, they never cease to cause wonder and joy.
Thank you, Father, for your creativity exhibited in the vast array of animals you have created. Whenever I see them, may I think of You and give You all the praise for what you have made.
“Does the hawk take flight by your wisdom and spread its wings toward the south?
Does the eagle soar at your command and build its nest on high?”
(This devotion was first published in “The Secret Place.”
Every morning as I prepare for my day, I decide what to wear. Looking in my closet and dresser, I have choices to make. Do I wear a skirt today? Slacks? Jeans? What top coordinates with the skirt or pants? Both must match in color and appropriateness for the weather and occasion. Next, I must decide on appropriate accessories. Which shoes? Belt? Scarf? Jewelry? All these choices must coordinate to create a unified whole. Once I make my decisions and dress, I’m ready for the day.
Just as I am able to choose daily what clothes I’ll wear, I have choices in what to don from my spiritual closet. What shall I wear today? Shall it be a spirit of complaining or a spirit of gratefulness? If I wear the spirit of complaining, I must also put on bitterness and accessorize with sorrow, for these create a coordinated ensemble. Before deciding what to choose from my spiritual closet, I think, “Is this what a child chosen by God would wear? Is this appropriate attire for the daughter of the King?” If not, I discard those “clothes” and choose to wear something else. Today, perhaps I’ll don that spirit of gratefulness. To match gratefulness, I choose compassion and humility, for those naturally complement gratefulness. In order to accessorize, I choose good deeds for my feet. To top it all off, the sparkling gem of God’s love unifies the ensemble. Now I’m ready for the day.
Father, help me choose wisely from my closet of spiritual clothing.
Colossians 3:12 “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”
On November 4th, I am thankful for fall weather. I love the invigorating, fresh, cool air; the vivid colors of the season, the bountiful autumn harvests, and snuggling up under a soft, warm blanket to read a good book.
I am thankful for a God who creates such a variety of beauty for us to enjoy.
Lord, as we enjoy the beauty of this season, may all the loveliness you have created draw us closer to you. Thank you for the glory of autumn.
“He has made everything beautiful in its time.” Ecclesiastes 3:11
The greatest issue facing the world today, with all its heartbreaking needs, is whether those who, by profession or culture, are identified as ‘Christians’ will become disciples – students, apprentices, practitioners – of Jesus Christ, steadily learning from him how to live the life of the Kingdom of the Heavens into every corner of human existence.
Dallas Willard
Father God, teach me to constantly learn how to live like you, how to live “the life of the Kingdom of the Heavens” in every part of my life while I am here on earth.
Growing Our Faith Together 