Back in early September I wrote a blogpost about Ann Voskamp's book, One Thousand Gifts. In the post, I mentioned that I had taken Voskamp's example and began to write down things I was thankful for.
The whole idea was to nurture a deeper sense of thanks in the middle of everyday life. An appreciation for the simple (and significant) things, and for God's hand in them.
As this post is being written, I've recorded 1567 things to be thankful for in my thanks journal.
Here's an update of some of the more recent entries:
No, 1410 Great TED talk by Jeremy Courtney. (He and his wife run an organization called Preemptive Love that provides life-saving surgeries for kids in Iraq). You can view Jeremy's TED talk here.
No. 1425. Weeding flower beds around the house. It's amazing how far a little weeding will go in bringing out natural beauty. A handy metaphor for life.
No. 1431. Having lunch with 3 friends who spontaneously called me up to say there were in town attending a car show. There's nothing like the sheer joy of unplanned fellowship!
No. 1443. Enjoyed a movie, A Simple Story about a Chinese filmmaker who took care of his childhood caretaker when her health became increasingly frail.
No. 1447. Great Kids' Church class today! If you want to remain hopeful and emotionally/mentally limber, spend time with a bunch of kids!
No. 1462. Supper with one of my sisters and her husband who were up from Florida. It's fun to get together with family, especially when out-of-state siblings are involved. Such times help me not take them for granted.
No. 1463 Peace House is back up for the school year! (It's a place on the east side of town where two married couples with kids have joined together to minister to other kids in this fragile neighborhood.)
No, 1488. Three of my 4 sister siblings got together to go through our Mom's memorabilia (mostly clothing items). Mom passed away 20 months ago, and it was time to sort through her belongings to pass them along to other siblings and grandchildren. I was very grateful to be part of honoring Mom's memory this way.
No. 1503 Started the day feeling highly anxious but was grateful for God's mercy in alleviating that feeling once I acknowledged it and gave it to God.
No. 1534 Found free parking for the Art Prize in Grand Rapids, MI. This is a major art show, with hundreds of pieces exhibited throughout the city, drawing in thousands of people each day. So getting a parking space gratis was no small accomplishment!
No, 1540 Got to be part of an alumni-student event at Olivet College. About 15 students were given a chance to chat with alumni about career options and plans. I hadn't been back on campus in over two decades so this was a real treat! Even nicer to have an opportunity to meet with current students who were so optimistic about their future.
No. 1542 Made a bacon-lettuce-tomato sandwich featuring a juicy-ripe tomato from my brother's garden! It was the best tomato I'd had all year! And there is nothing like that combination!!!
None of the above events are earth-shatteringly significant.
But, as Voskamp suggests, it's good practice to acknowledge them and remind ourselves where these moments of grace come from.
There's a scripture that states, "God is the author and perfecter of our faith."
Somehow, I think the simple act of giving thanks is a huge part of that process.
Thanks again, Ann Voskamp for opening my eyes to this practice!
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