Falling Off the Wagon

I fell off the thankful wagon. Pinpointing the exact time is difficult, but it was sometime between the $900 car repair and the leaky toilet and the dog's third seizure and the four-day-long bout with the flu.

I had been trying so hard to count my three things a day, a challenge I took on over at Ann Voskamp's blog at the beginning of the New Year. Then all of a sudden, one day of not counting turned into two... two turned into four, and before long I had gone almost an entire month without a conscious effort of being thankful.

My life is truly blessed. I want to be thankful... no, more than that, I NEED to be thankful. I don't want to be the woman who lets life's blessings pass by unnoticed and sits in a rocking chair at the end of my life with nothing but regrets. I want to recognize the joy while it's mine to grasp, see the blessings while they are literally everywhere. Why is this so hard?

It shouldn't be. So today I choose to get back on the thankful wagon. To count my blessings and be thankful because "this is God's will for (me) in Christ Jesus." (1 Thess. 5:18) What better reason to give thanks? When I'm thankful, I am fulfilling God's will for my life!

Thank you Lord, for this absolutely perfect, beautiful Spring day...

for an evening walk with my entire family at my side...

for blue skies and shopping trips with the three most wonderful kids on the planet...

for a husband who loves to be with his family more than anything else...

for reminders of Your love everywhere.

I am forever grateful!

On the Way to 1,000

I'm 11 days into The Joy Dare -- counting at least three gifts or graces from God every day until I get to 1,000 gifts (and probably not stopping there). So far, it hasn't been difficult to find an abundance of things to be thankful for; although, I must admit that I have simply forgotten to count my gifts on a few days.



How could I forget to be thankful? "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever." Psalm 136:1

Forgetting to be thankful should not be an option. Forgetting means I am not dwelling on the goodness of God. Am I so caught up in the things of this world that I am not captivated by His love?

The Psalmist reminds himself:

I remember the days of long ago;
I meditate on all your works
and consider what your hands have done.
Psalm 143:5

So today I will remember and be thankful for:

#26 ~ A Grace in the Kitchen... Bright yellow bananas with just a hint of green.

#27 ~ A Grace in the Weather... Beautiful, pristine snow, falling like grace from heaven (even though the country roads may be a bit difficult to navigate!)

#28 ~ A Grace that Might Never Have Been... My three beautiful children.

I was diagnosed with endometriosis when I was 26 years old. My doctor warned me that many women with this disease are unable to conceive. Two years after my diagnosis, I gave birth to our first baby girl. Two more blessings followed. But I never want to forget that these children, these amazing gifts from God are just that... GIFTS. Thank you, Lord, for giving me the privilege of being a mother!

The Joy Dare

#1 A Gift in My Hand... The one that started it all: One Thousand Gifts

Have you heard of The Joy Dare?  Ann Voskamp, author of One Thousand Gifts, is challenging her readers to count 1,000 gifts in 2012. Snap a photo or record three gifts a day. Little gifts, big gifts, they're all the same -- graces given to us from the hand of a gracious God.

On Ann's blog, A Holy Experience, you'll find January's Joy Dare download. Some ideas to give you a little inspiration in your search for blessings. You probably won't have to look far. Don't be discouraged if you're joining the game a little late -- I'm starting today, too! After all, it's never too late to start being thankful. Three gifts a day multiplied by 366 days (this year's a Leap Year, remember?) equals 1,098, so if we're faithful every day, we should easily be able to log 1,000 gifts... or more!

#2 A Gift I Walked By... What a great reminder of The Joy Dare!

#3 A Gift I Sat With... Woman's best friend, my faithful buddy, Coda

So are you ready? Take The Joy Dare with me! In the words of Ann Voskamp herself:

This kneeling wherever we are, and murmuring it aloud, just this one word to Him, this is the word that can change everything – us and the whole world: “Thank-you.”