Weekly Gratitude Journal

Autumn officially begins next week! For many of us, we turn the page of the seasonal calendar the minute the Labor Day weekend is over. Yesterday morning we had rain. It was a relief after a hot, dry summer. I was beginning to fear we were going to have a repeat of the horrific wildfire season we had in the September of 2020. The minute I woke up to the sound of rain I decided to make my husband's favorite homemade soup for dinner. By the afternoon, the temps had creeped back up into the summer range and so we ate our hot soup with the air conditioner on. We had to face the truth that it's still summer!

When August ended and September began we were on vacation in beautiful Maine. Many of you know that Maine is pretty much my favorite place on earth. My love for it began the summer that I turned six. Our family took a cross country drive from Oregon to Maine to meet my mama's family for the first time. I fell in love with the place and our family there and that affection has been in my heart ever since. God and I had a talk about this while we were there on vacation. I asked Him why I had a deep sense of belonging in a place that I'd never actually lived. To be honest, sometimes I ask God questions and I hear nothing or He answers me later on, often in surprising ways. But on that morning, God spoke quickly and clearly to my heart. "Your longing to be in a place you've never actually lived before and your love for the family that remains there is just a taste of the reality you live in as My child. You long to be with Me, though you've never actually seen me. You long to live where I am. You long for the kingdom of God. It's where your citizenship actually is and though you're never lived there before, it's where you really belong." This analogy blessed me so much and the truth of it is still ringing in my heart. 

Our second born daughter and her family have lived in South Carolina for over a year now. Our youngest daughter and her family have lived in Florida for about nine months. I'm so thankful that our oldest daughter and her family still live not too far from us. Yet, I still mourn at times, I still shed tears at times, for what used to be. I loved having our family all living in close proximity. I loved being able to babysit the grandkids when needed or spontaneously take them to the park or have them over for a sleepover. I loved that all eight of my grandchildren, "the cousins," were living near one another. That we are on separate sides of the U.S. now is still a hard adjustment for me and for my husband as well. We are so thankful for things like air miles that make trips to see one another possible. I only got to see my Nana in Maine twice in my whole life! But my east coast grandkids can see me on FaceTime anytime they want and we can fly there or they can come here relatively often. I'm very thankful for that.

I won't go into details, but I did mention vaguely here on my blog that our church made a big transition four years ago. Change always costs us something, doesn't it? And the changes we made definitely did. But, we are now seeing the beauty of following the directions of the Lord no matter the cost. When we were on vacation, there was not one bit of concern about how things would go at church without us. The shift we made was, in part, to grow and mature people in the church so that they take ownership in the church-so it's no longer so pastoral dependent. How beautiful it was to not only hear how great things went while we were gone, but to hear that visitors came and loved what God is doing. In all of our over four decades of ministry I have never lived in the reality that God's yoke is easy and His burden is light or lived the truth of the scripture that God will build His church and the gates of hell will not prevail against. To be living in that kind of peace and joy is so amazing and so beautiful. I give God all my praise and thanksgiving!

Well, I have a lot of catching up to do with my gratitude list, so buckle up for a long list!

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Since 2009 I've been counting my blessings thanks to the prompting of Ann Voskamp.

 I continue to count my thanks, 

piling up gratitude day by day in my journal.

(and capturing some of my blessings via my camera or iPhone)

#16,064-#16,142

8-23-2022-

-a trip to see our east coast kids and grandkids is on the calendar 

(which gives us something to look forward to!)

-Papa and our oldest grandson texting back and forth

-an encouraging text

8-24-2022-

-our generous, thoughtful daughter

-texting my siblings

-one last trip to the river with our granddaughters before school starts 

8-25-2022-

-a sweet morning of prayer and the Word-digging into 1 John

-a nice long FB chat and prayer with my oldest granddaughter

-a great Bible study and discussion tonight

8-26-2022-

-a sweet date day with my guy

-my Florida grandkids opening their mail from me on FaceTime

-texts with with friends about what God is speaking to us through His Word

(this is the beautiful new normal we now have our church!)

8-27-2022-

-re-reading through the treasure box of memories that my girls made for me years ago-

what a blessing!

-a sweet time with the Lord even as I cleaned the house

-videos of my sweet five year old grandson at his soccer game 

and of our oldest grandson at his football game

-youngest grandson FaceTiming us to say goodnight

8-28-2022-

-God's beautiful presence

-more new faces at church today

-new volunteers for the church nursery

8-29-2022-

-a safe and uneventful flight to Maine

-twenty minutes in a massage chair on our layover ☺️

-Maine wild blueberry pancakes with Maine maple syrup

-our cozy little AirBnB cottage built in the 1760's!

8-30-2022-

-sunflowers and pumpkins in front of grand New England homes

-an orange monarch butterfly

-Mama's hometown

-the rocky coast at Reid State Park

-sitting on a park bench and sipping cups of hot tea while listening

 to the Bath Municipal Band play in the town gazebo

8-31-2022-

-church bells chiming on the hour

-an early morning rainstorm

-so much good stuff going over the scriptures from Sunday's notes

-Facetime call from my daughter and grandson

-a funny video of my granddaughter 

9-1-2022-

-September!

-praying with the ladies from our church even though I'm in Maine

-whole belly clams for lunch-so good!

-a beach day!

-an exciting invitation!

9-2-2022-

-Friday Date Day in Maine! ❤️

-dinner with my aunt and cousins

-fresh lobster, corn on the cob and blueberry pie with ice cream for dessert!

9-3-2022-

-a scripture and encouraging word for a loved one

-getting to explore parts of Maine we've not been to before with my cousin and his wife

-my cousin's generosity

9-4-2022-

-a good night's sleep 

-it's our 46th anniversary!

-good reports on how well church went

-the best prime rib at The Harbor Room

-beautiful Pemaquid Point and Pemaquid beach

-seaglass hunting-my favorite!

9-5-2022-

-sleeping in

-a cozy, lazy, rainy day

-listening to and taking notes on a great teaching video

9-6-2022-

-getting to listen to Sunday's service 

-Boothbay Harbor

-a new cozy Maine sweatshirt

9-7-2022-

-morning sun shining through the old paned windows onto the pine floors of this old cottage

-God showing me that my sense of belonging in a place I'e never lived before is a picture of my longing to be with Him in His kingdom

-a beautiful day at Fort Popham and Popham beach

-God's provision of this time together

9-8-2022-

-one last breakfast of blueberry pancakes at Becky's Diner in Portland, ME 

before heading home

-time to go to Portland Head Lighthouse before heading to the airport

-a foggy Maine morning that turned into a stunningly beautiful sunny day

-a safe flight home with no delays or cancellations

-our home

-our pup, Sal

9-9-2022-

-new glasses

-God's provision for everything from groceries to vacations

-a bouquet of sunflowers

9-10-2022-

-a nice long phone chat 

-wildfire near loved ones is now contained 

-my guys appreciation for a simple supper of tacos

9-11-2022-

-God's watchful care over us 21 years ago as we flew home from New England on 9-11-2001

-making a wild Maine blueberry crisp for tonight's meeting

-a beautiful time of sharing, prayer and growing together with Visionary Leadership and Growth Group Coordinators

9-12-2002-

-much needed rain

-the reality and hope of eternal life as we face the passing of a dear one from our church

-a quiet morning to study

-a nice long walk with our dog

still following,

Weekly Gratitude Journal

The text asked us to please pray. A loved one was hurting. The last few years have been hard and cruel, wearying and wounding, especially for young people. Life had turned gray, hopeless, pointless. My heart ached. I could relate to the battle with depression as I had first encountered the same battle when I was our dear one's same age. As I prayed I felt the assurance that God had this one in His hand, just as He had had me all those decades ago. I felt that this battle would become an intersection in our loved one's life put there by God, just as that same battle had been in mine. 

Later that morning, I went on a previously scheduled outing with a friend. Our original plans had changed, however, due to a medical issue she had had the night before. Instead of a day trip out of town, we stayed close to home, visiting some antique stores only a few miles from my house.

For weeks I had been searching online for a Le Creuset white grand teapot. I already own a smaller white Le Creuset teapot with a matching cream pitcher and sugar bowl. I wanted the matching larger teapot because I do a lot of hosting of groups of women who love to drink tea. Sadly, I was not having any luck finding the teapot. I either couldn't find the color or it was too expensive with shipping fees from the UK added on top of the already high price.

Some places labeled "antique store" should more truthfully be labeled "thrift store" and that was the case of the last store my friend and I had on our agenda for the day. As we were heading toward the exit to leave the store, I noticed the top of a white teapot tucked behind other miscellaneous junk on a shelf. When I picked it up to have a closer look, I was shocked to find that it was a white Le Creuset grand teapot in mint condition! In fact it looked as though it may never have been used. The price tag said twelve dollars! I was overjoyed! Instantly, I knew that this was a God moment. I also knew that it wasn't about Him giving me the exact teapot I wanted. It was about knowing that He sees me, hears me and cares for me. He is aware of every tiny detail, care, need, desire and longing in my life. He cares for me watchfully and affectionately. And I knew He was reassuring me, though the lesson of the teapot, that He has my loved one securely in His loving, watchful care as well. 

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Since 2009 I've been counting my blessings thanks to the prompting of Ann Voskamp.

 I continue to count my thanks, 

piling up gratitude day by day in my journal.

(and capturing some of my blessings via my camera or iPhone)

(Catching up on August's gratitude journal posts.)

#15,984-#16,063

8-1-2022-

-the handsome bald eagle that likes to perch on the tree across the river from the cabin

-a perfect Oregon coast beach day together 

-the most delicious Marionberry pie purchased at a little coastal bakery 

-finding my lens cover after losing it the brush on the path to the river

-kayaking with my little buddy

8-2-2022-

-God's faithfulness, care, provision, protection, mercy, grace and love toward me 

every moment of all of these past sixty five years

-all three of my girls together to celebrate my birthday with me as well as

six of my grandkids. And phone calls from the oldest two grands that couldn't be here.

-a trip to Maine the end of this month for my birthday surprise!

8-3-2022-

-this time with my daughters and grandkids

-a windy day, a kayak that almost came off the top of the car on the freeway, 

but we made it safely back home from the cabin!

-good reports from tonight's men's gathering at church

8-4-2022-

-all of the cards, texts, messages I got for my birthday

-a good night's sleep

-praying with a friend

8-5-2022-

-our daughters and grandkids had safe travels back home to the east coast

-a great big hot coffee and a sweet time in prayer and the word

-a quiet day to rest after having a houseful for 2 1/2 weeks

8-6-2022-

-listening to good teaching while doing my chores

-a deep cleaned house

-a farewell dinner with our growth group for a dear friends who is moving away

8-7-2022-

-a wonderful day at church

-a good talk with a friend

-a really yummy lunch - London Broil on the grill, corn on the cob, Caesar salad

-a good time of prayer, sharing and planning with my VLT

8-8-2022-

-a quiet day to study

-facetime chats with my east coast kids and grandkids

-a thoughtful birthday gifts from a friend

8-9-2022-

-a sweet time in prayer

-my husband bringing me dinner so I don't have to cook before my meeting

-a faithful one who always helps with set-up for our meetings

-such a good crowd at our gathering-God is building our church!

8-10-2022-

-a new chair for my home office

-a husband who is super easy to please about dinner

-talking to and praying with my granddaughter

-a walk after dinner

8-11-2022-

-our grandson's first day of kindergarten

-my eight year old grandson FaceTiming me to tell me he knows the history of the song

 we sing together, "I Have Decided to Follow Jesus. 

"It was written in "Nana times!" You know, the 1900's!" 😂😂😂

-dinner with my guy at our favorite Mexican restaurant

8-12-2022-

-a day to rest before a very full weekend that begins tonight 

-a brisk walk with the dog before tonight's meeting

-God's continued work in us as a church

8-13-2022-

-wakng up to the voice of our five year old grandson facetiming Papa

-my sister! Today is her birthday!

-waking up feeling better after a migraine

-a beautiful day of growing in God and in relationship with one another 

8-14-2022-

-a beautiful time of worship

-a word that challenges old mindsets

-God at work in people in a visible way

-God at work in us as a church in a way that is noticeable to others

8-15-2022-

-Facetime calls from our east coast girls and grandkids

-God's care and provision for us

-my cozy morning quiet time spot

8-16-2022-

-homemade blueberry pancakes

-a big pot of yellow mums

-a BOGO sale on vitamins

8-17-2022-

-our son-in-law safely home from a trip to Rwanda

-lunch together at one of our favorite spots

-a FaceTime chat with my granddaughter

-a good report from a friend 

8-18-2022-

beautiful morning sky

-a beautiful morning in prayer and the word

-cooler weather than forecasted 

8-19-2022-

-my guy caught a 17lb salmon

-trusting God's work in my hurting loved one

-a perfect condition white Le Creuset grand teapot for $12!

8-20-2022-

-a morning with the Lord

-an "I love you nana" text

-a clean house

-writing a "book" to mail to my grandkids

8-21-2022-

-the beautiful presence of God

-the power of the Word to break and to heal, to tear down and to build

-a FaceTime chat with my grandson

-my big brother got water baptized!

8-22-2022-

-my cozy home office

-the pink sunrise

-a little creative crafting project

-yard work that I've been procrastinating finally done

-The I Exalt Thee album that I've been feasting on for days

-a beautiful dinner and time of growing together with our growth group

still following,