A Thankful Heart


Psalm 86:12     I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever.

Psalm 95:2     Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

Psalm 106:1     Praise the Lord.  Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. 

Colossians 3:17     And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18     Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.     

                     

I awake every morning and thank God for something…sometimes it’s that I’ve rested well, sometimes, the sky is beginning to get pink with the rising sun, sometimes it’s a thought or memory from the day before, but always there is a reason to be thankful in my heart.  Then I may turn over….ouch, creak!, ouch, ouch, oh my back, my hip!   OH, my foot, yikes, ow, ow!   And thankfully after a few yards of hobbling, I can straighten and stop wincing.  And be very thankful for that!

There is a skylight in my bathroom which looks out over the sound, and I can see enough to sometimes still watch the moon slide away, especially if it’s a full one that just wants to linger and shine, and I can tell if the waters are rough or quiet.  And during this time of year, the birds are full of song and chirping and praising our Creator.  How blessed are we to be able to enjoy and appreciate all He gives us as gifts! 

I have tried to list all the things I have to be thankful for over my life time.  Can’t do it; I know I’m missing bunches of things that happened.  It’s fairly easy for me to appreciate the big things—family, having a grandmother who lived with us, we had a lovely home and a neighborhood full of kids around our ages,  (and it became known as the ‘cool’ neighborhood.  Everyone wanted to be part of the Robin Rd Gang!).  Mothers would report to other mothers if we were disobedient, sneaking cigarettes, or whatever good or bad deed we had done.  It was a community of raising us and keeping an eye out.  It was set in a rural neighborhood, in fact a farmer and sold many acres and a developer built homes.  It was perfect for young families.  Our house sat in a cul-de-sac, and we had a large flat yard, and there were plenty of places for hide and seek, Playing chicken in the cul de sac and anything we else we chose to do.  Yet, it’s another one of my big reasons to be thankful.

My grandmother and mother both enjoyed gardening, so the flower beds we had looked awesome most of the time.  We had pets, and part of our responsibilities was to feed them, let them out and so forth.  We spent time together as a family, knowing how each was doing.   Although my father worked weekday evening shifts, he touched base a couple of times when he would have breaks.   My family praised when it was earned, and encouraged when you had not done as well as you wanted.  A lot to be grateful for.

I am so thankful in live in the south rather than the northeast.  Years before I left, I knew I no longer liked dealing with the snow, ice, cold, and bitter cold, and did I say COLD?   Yuck!  The snow can be pretty, appreciate it and be in awe of the beauty, but shoveling and walking while praying you do not slip, fall, and break anything gets old.  I was not very tolerant once in the mid-thirties to deal with pulling toboggans for fifteen minutes uphill for a 10 second ride down.   Certainly, I muttered while cleaning off my car to get to work, and then really grumbled to clean it off after a 12 hr shift to get home.  Yes, there is an abundance of thankfulness for me to live here versus there.

I cannot list all the wonderful things to be grateful and thankful for, but sometimes my heart feels as though it wants to burst with it.  Today, there are a couple of singing, thankful birds, and I cannot help but smile as they sing and share their song. 

I’ve included a couple pictures, most taken on the island (not by me, but others who have shared).  Hope you can see reason to be thankful in them too.

 

                                                                                                                                                                               Thank you, Brandi Newkirk  for dolphin pics

  Thank You for the bounty and beauty, for Your grace and love and Your immense sacrifice for me.   You are awesome to me and ‘mybellaviews.’                                                                              

 

Comments

comments