Today I am thankful for the mockingbird that still sings. I know it is only there are only a few more days left before the singing season is over, but today he still sings. I am thankful for automated sprinklers that water a heat-parched garden while I meditate on His Word. I am grateful for the cool morning stillness. I am thankful for His Presence with me here, and that same, ever watchful Presence with my loved ones, near and far; those still slumbering in their beds, or readying for a day’s work, or waking up somewhere in the Yosemite wilderness. I am thankful for His unconditional Love, ever working in our lives, not to conform us to our own, miserable image-making, but to His grand and glorious Image. I am thankful that whether I, or my loved ones, are on track with Him or mislead in matters small or large, He does not abandon us, or treat us as we deserve, but even as we applaud a baby’s first steps, so He applauds and encourages us in every baby step we take. I am thankful that He does not mock our sorrows, but rather He is there with us, weeping with us, and bottling up our tears. I cannot understand a God, who knowing that He Himself was about to resurrect a man, Lazarus, and bring him back to life, would yet weep with Mary and Martha in their grief. I cannot understand it, but I am so thankful to know that He weeps with us. I am so thankful to be loved by such a One as the Lord Jesus Christ.

As I continue the study in the Way of Agape, the author, Nancy Missler, poses the question, “1 Corinthians 13:8 says that God’s Love never fails.  What does this mean to you?”  Hmmmm…what does it mean to me?  I am reminded that I have been unconditionally loved from conception. There is nothing I can do to undo that love, ever, nor is there anything I can do to earn more of His Love. He has loved me with a complete and perfect love from my earliest beginning, and He loves me with a love that will never cease, no matter my response to His Love. Although His Love is perfect, complete and endless, that does not mean I have understood, accepted or received His Love the way He intends me to. I must choose to be open to receiving His Presence….and, paradoxically, it is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God!!! Hebrews 11:6 reminds us that “without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”  If I truly believe that He is, and that my seeking of Him will assuredly be rewarded, then all my waking moments will be spent, one way or another, in seeking Him…and then I will also KNOW His love that never fails, in the way that He desires that I should know His amazing, incredible, incomprehensible, Love.   What about you?  What does it mean to you that His Love never fails?  I would love to hear what it means to others.

Today I am thankful for joy. I am thankful for His Sweet Presence with me, whether I am alert to Him or not. I am thankful that He has equipped us with the power of choice – fear, despair, discouragement may all come pounding, both front and back doors, but I may choose whether to allow them in or send them packing, and choose to let the Joy of the Lord be my strength. I am thankful that those intruders cannot dwell together with His Joy; that darkness flees from Light. I am thankful that He remains with me even when I forget to make wise choices and temporarily give into those poundings; that He loves me still and patiently waits. I am thankful that He promises to finish that which He has begun in me. And I am thankful, O so thankful, that it is His job to complete His work in me and none of mine. I am thankful for a tender-hearted man who loves and cares for me; for a husband who is humble and teachable in spirit, who continues to grow into God’s purposes for him. I am thankful that the father of my children loves them fiercely and deeply, is a marshmallow when they want something, and who is deeply committed to their welfare. Today I am thankful for early morning quiet, with only the sound of my little serenading mockingbird friend to keep tryst with our Lord. I am thankful that we have a Future and a Hope; that the Kingdom of God dwells here among men, that the Eternal One dwells in our hearts even now.

Today I am thankful. Thankful to be alive. Thankful to be able to breathe freely. To enjoy the fragrance of the roses in our garden and the tantalizing aromas from the kitchen as Daniel whips up another one of his garlic laden dishes!! I am thankful for taste, to be able to savor the creation that Daniel has whipped up; and without taste, alas, we would not have savored the delight of all the earth, chocolate! I am thankful that we can taste not only earthly nourishment, but we can also taste, and see that the Lord is truly good!! Today I am thankful for sight. Sight to see my loved one’s faces, their smiles and their tears; sight to see colors in the garden, the caterpillars on the tomatoes, the lady bugs and the aphids; to see the bountiful harvest as well as the bountiful tasks yet undone. I am thankful today for hearing, for the gift to be able to hear the bird that serenades me each morning, to be able to hear my 8 year old who brightens up tedious chore time with songs from his heart for touch and riddles me with questions. Thankful even to hear if he whines or complains, because it means he is here with us. I am thankful for touch, for the warmth of a hug, I am thankful even for the sharpness of the thorns on the roses, the prickliness of the zucchini plants and cucumbers, because blessings often do come coupled with pain or sorrow. Today I am thankful that my heavenly Father has so richly blessed us with such abundance.

Today I am thankful for quiet moments before the dawn of day. I am thankful for sons and a daughter who are responsible, diligently working each day, who faithfully carry out their responsibilities at the place of their employment, and who invest their “spare” time to pursue the dream or passion that God is birthing within them. I am thankful for a husband who sets the pace and gets things done. I am thankful to serve a God who calls us to take steps of faith, to follow His call and watch Him remove the giants in the land that He has called us to. I am thankful for the knocking of our clunky washing machine, because it means that we have one. I am thankful that we have the promise that “in ALL these things, we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us, and that His is a love that we cannot be separated from.”

Today I am thankful for His Love which is an everlasting love. I am also thankful that His love is a relentlessly pursuing love, an initiating love that seeks us out long before we seek Him. I am thankful that we serve a God who delight is to bless us, and who is  patiently waiting for us to be ready for His blessing. I am thankful for green grass, for living, green trees that provide rest and shade, and shelter for the birds of the air. I am thankful for the birds that fill our mornings with their praises. I am thankful for friends who challenge us to be more, sometimes with words, but more often by their lives

Today I am thankful for small voices that lift their hearts in worship to the Lord through their spontaneous songs. I am thankful for the smiles on loved one’s faces, and the twinkle in their eyes. I am thankful for small things, for a God whose face can be seen in the majestic mighty mountains, but also in the incredibly tiny flowers and critters in nature. I am thankful for a Heavenly Father who cares not only for my overwhelming troubles, but also for my small and tiny cares. I am thankful even for adversity, and the opportunity for growth it brings. I am thankful that we have been created, not as stagnant, robot-like beings, but instead in His Creative Image, with the capacity to stretch and grow and become so much more. I am thankful for fresh, new starts each new morning. I am thankful for the undeserved, faithful prayers of so many friends.

July 6, 2009 - I am thankful that the Lord has saved me, and called me His own. I am thankful for the family He has gifted and entrusted me with. I am thankful for each new day, a fresh start to try again. I am thankful for His faithfulness, for His Patience, His Mercy, His Grace, His Unconditional Love. I am thankful for a home to live in, for a garden to work and learn in. I am thankful for the opportunity and freedom to Homeschool. I am thankful for His promises to finish that we He has begun in me. I am thankful that He has begun a work in me. I am thankful for a healthy body, whole limbs, eyes that tho dimming, yet see.

July 7, 2009 - Today I am thankful to the Lord who unconditionally loves me and calls me according to His purposes, and I am thankful that I serve a God who is looking for the man or woman who will trust Him completely and will do great and mighty things through them for His glory. What an amazing and awesome privilege to be used for His Glory!! I am thankful for Daniel, a man of lofty dreams, who is able to keep resetting his course direction when he is getting off track. I am thankful for Ruth-Anne, who even though she is off track, pursues what she believes to be right whole-heartedly. I am thankful for Sarah, who has such a tender and compassionate heart, and yet will breathe fire for the cause of justice. I am thankful for Bobby, who loves life, and never stops dreaming and thinking, and who also has a tender heart towards the things of God. I am thankful for John-Mark, a man of determination, strength and action, who persists in pursuing the high calling of God. I am thankful, that even though we get off course, we have the promises of God, that if we cry out for Wisdom, He will supply. I am thankful that we have a home with beds to sleep on, chairs to sit in, and closets to hang our clothes in. I am grateful for hot running water and electricity. I am thankful for our garden and all the lessons I am learning from it, and the good food that is growing.

July 8, 2009 - I am thankful for my dad, and the extra years that God has given us to know him better. I am thankful for the good health and state of mind he is in. I am thankful for my brothers and their wives and families, and that their intentions towards us are for good. I am thankful for kind friends that the Lord has brought into our lives. I am thankful for Karissa, who is always a ray of sunshine each time we meet. I am thankful for God’s unending goodness and faithfulness, for His patience with our frailties and inconsistencies

July 9, 2009 - Today I am thankful that our Creator is a Father who loves all men unconditionally, even those who are ungrateful and evil (which is all of us if it were not for His Redemption) I am thankful that He does not daily treat me as I deserve, that His Love is patient, kind, long-suffering. I am thankful for His tender mercies and bountiful Grace. I am thankful for His faithful provisions, even amidst our faithlessness, our tendency to forget His goodness and our tendency to not trust and cast all our burdens on Him. I am thankful that His heart is to bless and not curse, that He is a tender Father, rooting us on to success. I am thankful that he spurs us on to dream God-sized dreams. I am thankful that He cares so tenderly for me.

July 10, 2009 - Today I am thankful that God’s love is an enduring love. I am thankful that God’s love is a creative Love and that is free from my will, but dictated entirely by His Wise All-Knowing Sovereignty, His Mercy, Grace and Goodwill and His Glory. I am thankful that God sends His rain upon the just and the unjust. I am thankful, that in Christ Jesus, we have hope indeed. I am thankful that we serve a God who walks on water, who with a word, created the universe, and who also, with a word, stilled a raging, stormy sea, and who can calm the storms that rage within, and guide us safely through the storms that rage without.

After the main, fruit bearing, branch of our young “wacky apple” tree broke off the realization that we should have braces and supported it while it was laden with so many apples dawned upon us.  While the tree was bearing much fruit…the apples were still rather small, and it didn’t seem noticably over-burdened.   A “wacky apple” tree is one that has 3 or 4 kinds of apples grafted into it, so in losing that one main branch, we probably lost 2 kinds of apples.  Even though we didn’t plant the tree, it was here when we moved in, we have still very much enjoyed eating the delicious apples off our own tree.  So I feel a little sad about the loss.  But it also started me thinking about loved ones in our lives, who may be bearing a heavy load of one kind or another in their lives, who may need a little support or bracing up until the fruit fully ripens.  If we aren’t observant enough, and don’t realize that they may need just a little help or encouagemnent, they may break under the load they are bearing.  However, that same load, with a little “bracing up” or encouragement and help, may bear much fruit and bring blessing to a multitude of people, and they themselves will continue to grow stong and mulitply in their ability to bear more.   May the Lord enable us to have the ears to hear, and the eyes to see, those around us who need that little bit of bracing up.

Currently, I am going through a book called The Way of Agape, by Chuck and Nancy Missler.  This is my second time plowing through this study, but this time I am going at a slower pace and actually looking up the myriad of scriptural references cited in the book.  The current passage I have been chewing on, from 1 John 4:16: God is love, the one who abides in love, abides in God, and God abides in him.”  While going through this study, at the same time, my husband and I have had the privedege to become involved with the Mastering the Mysteries of Love class (www.growyourmarriage.com) One of the first of the 10 skills we learn is how to put our own thoughts, feelings, agenda, etc. aside and listen to our spouse/child/friend with true and deep empathy.  That should have been a snap for me.  I have the gift of mercy (empathy) and I’m a good listener.  Well, that’s what I thought until we took this class.  Oops.  As we began to try to implement the skills we learned in this class I came face to face with the difficulty I have in “putting my own defensive thoughts aside as well as the difficulty I have putting my focus on trying to understand my husband’s heart.  Ouch!   I have seen what an unloving, self-centered, self-protective being I am. There is no inkling, in all honesty, of Agape in my soul. According to these verses – because I am not really walking in Agape towards by own husband and family – I really know nothing of His Love. I am too full of myself to have any room for God or others. In my ignorance,  I was hasty to accuse another family member of such behavior…here I stand with the log in my own eye. May the Lord’s gracious mercies wash me clean, by His Blood.