The sun shines through the window. It's going to be a different kind of Thanksgiving. Plans are being cancelled. Travel discouraged. A different kind of Thanksgiving. The oven warms the kitchen as blueberry muffins bake and sausage fries. A second pot of coffee is made and scrambled eggs wait to be poured into the piping hot cast iron. I will set soup to simmer on the back burner and bread to rise. A different kind of Thanksgiving. Our church usually hosts a dinner on this night. A gathering. Fellowship. Warmth. Food. And Praise. Always praise. Because that is the ... View Post
Thankful Journal, 30 Days of Thankfulness, Day 18
On a whim, I sign up for an on line study. 1,000 Gifts by Ann Voskamp. A thankful journal. This was a few weeks ago. I have read the book and began counting my way to 1,000 - years ago. I start the study. It takes me most of the day to listen to the teaching. Most of it I have heard, or read. I find it refreshing. Naming the gifts we are thankful for. For 7 years I have recorded those gifts through the month of November, right here on this blog. Tonight. I wonder. When did I begin this naming journey? For a few moments I wonder. I head to the shelf for my 1,000 Gifts ... View Post
Stillness, 30 Days of Thankfulness, Day 8
That night, in the quiet, there was a stillness. The veil was thin. My son had been called home. My red headed boy. Full of life and dreams. A heart captured by a sweet love. Interrupted. Silenced. My God, that I serve, asked me to walk a road no one wants to walk. The stillness of that night remains with me. There was a holiness and a peace as I stepped forward. I moved in a state of praise. Our first language. I defaulted to what I knew as grief began it's journey. I had a heart still reeling from the loss of my mom. So, I chose to step forward in a rhythm of ... View Post
Giving Thanks, Part 2, 30 Days of Thankfulness, Day 7
Sunshine and warmth. What a day! Giving thanks. Glorious! It's easy to name the Thanks when the sunshine spills over and the warm breeze lulls your senses. It's in the hard and the uncomfortable that we forget to stop, and give thanks. This is an Art. A practice. Day after day. Moment by moment. Giving thanks. Seeking the good. Finding the joy. Work. All around us there are changes. Nature has put on it's best finale this year. Displaying a majesty of colors and brilliance. A reminder. Giving thanks. Breath taking views that leave one speechless. Now, those brilliant ... View Post
When Life is Hard We Still Need to Give Thanks, 30 Days of Thankfulness Day 6
We lost two cows yesterday. When life is hard we still need give Thanks. The sun peeked over the mountain. The snow melted. Warmth permeated the air; almost Spring like. The seasons confused. The day turned out to be beautiful. Sunshine and warm air. There's still so many outside projects to get done. The weather is predicted to be nice all week. In the morning my farmer found one of the cows dead. Out of the blue. Another was not feeling well. The vet was called. And the beautiful day took a turn. We purposefully began to give thanks to God. We named thanks for ... View Post
The Real Work We Need to Do, 30 Days of Thankfulness Day 5
There is work. Then there is the real stuff. The soul work. The stuff no one wants to dig into. I've been feeling crabby most of the week. I'm not sure why. My kids have been great. My farmer is wonderful. We've been playing Christmas music as the first snow fell. So, there's no reason to be crabby. Yet I could still feel the sharp edge to my words. The lack of patience with requests. Frustration with book work not completed. Feeling the tension between being ok with being distracted and the need to feel organized. The real work we need to do is hard. It's stopping in those ... View Post
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