The word for the Friday challenge was thank you.
The goal is to write for five minutes with no editing.
Then post your ‘writing’.
Thank you
From the time I remember it was always something I learned to say.
Please and thankyou.
Manners of etiquette and not only that but a pleasing sound to someone.
If someone gives you something you say ‘thank you’.
It is a gesture of kindness.
I am thankful for…
we just left a season of thanksgiving.
A day of giving thanks for many things.
For we are richly blessed.
We have food on our table when we want or need it.
We have hot water for showers or tea.
We have antibiotics when we get sick and washers and dryers to clean up the mess.
There is much to be thankful for.
We have homes that are warm and cars that are easy to navigate.
I have just received a letter from a little five year old in Haiti who says she carry’s water for her family and walks 25 minutes to get to her compassion school.
That is incredible for a five year old.
And she says ‘thank you for sponsoring me’.
I should be the one thanking her for giving me a new perspective that life is so much more than money in the bank and affluent neighborhoods.
Thank you is a gesture of kindness and humility.
I thank you… for being a great encouragement to me.
Always.
Joining Lisa Jo and the link on friday.
As a little girl our tradition at thanksgiving was to go to our grandparents house.
Grandma made the entire dinner by herself and it was a wonderful tradition I sometimes miss.
I remember the table set with china and crystal and other beautiful dishes one would have to hand wash later.
The lighting in the dining room reflected a multitude of colors onto the white ceiling and walls.
It’s beauty just accented the already beautiful table. As a little girl I remember being in awe of the kaleidoscope of colors.
There were candles lit and coffee poured.
The women were often in the kitchen chatting and grandpa and our uncle would stay in the living room watching a game or something. As children we could stay in the kitchen and listen to the women chatter or sit quietly in the room with our grandpa being careful to not be loud and disturb them.
The table when dinner was ready seated everyone. The children were seated between the adults so we wouldn’t create an ‘issue’ while eating.
It was often our grandfathers birthday too as his day was so close to thanksgiving.
The table would always have roasted turkey, potatoes mashed, brown gravy, green beans with bacon inside, cranberries, dressing, pickles and olives, rolls and veggie tray and always pumpkin pie with real whipping cream.
It was our tradition for many years.
When we were little our mom and us three girls would anxiously watch the Macy’s day parade before we left for the special dinner.
I so remember our hair fixed in curlers and pressing our clothes to wear for the special day.
We were never allowed to wear jeans or tee shirts. We had been taught that it was a special day to dress up and so we always did.
Later as we married and continued the tradition with our children they learned to arrive dressed up the same way we did.
I am not going to say it was always a warm fuzzy hallmark moment but we did have tradition and it taught me to enjoy the finer ‘table settings’ and to this day I try to recreate that with our children and grand children.
Holidays are full of tradition.
Can you remember some of yours?
I pray that today was a good day for you.
A day of remembering times in the present or in the past spent with loved ones.
We always always have a reason to be thankful.
“Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other.
None of this going off and doing your own thing.
And cultivate thankfulness.
Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house.
Give it plenty of room in your lives.
Instruct and direct one another using good common sense.
And sing, sing your hearts out to God!
Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.”
Colossians 3:15 Msg version
Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other… Isn’t that a wonderful beginning?
In step with each other… that means you are not walking alone you are alongside each other going in the same direction.
And cultivate …
dictionary.com says it means to prepare and work on. to promote or improve growth. to develop. to tend and harvest. to break up
(as one would do with hard clumps of dirt) with the intention of good results. to give special attention to. thankfulness. I see it as an attitude change~ an intentional desire for a better outcome.
Let the word of Christ… permeate your household.
(pass into every part of).
Give it room in your lives just as you would give room for television, radio or cell phones.
Instruct as in teaching and encouraging each other. And sing. Nothing really touches a heart more deeply than words put into song.
Let EVERY detail… in every detail… of your lives remember to thank God for everything.
Always be joyful. Pray continually, and give thanks whatever happens.
That is what God wants for you in Christ Jesus.
1st Thessalonians 5:16,17,18 May we on this day of Thanksgiving… evaluate all that we are thankful for and sing a song of praise to the one who gives us life, breath and hope.
It’s God’s breath that forms the ice, it’s God’s breath that turns lakes and rivers solid.
And yes, it’s God who fills clouds with rainwater and hurls lightning from them every which way.
He puts them through their paces—first this way, then that— commands them to do what he says all over the world.
Whether for discipline or grace or extravagant love, he makes sure they make their mark.
Job 37:13
Joining with Deidra on jumping tandem and the Sunday community.
photo by Sarah B from Oregon (used by permission)
There is a five minute blog challenge every Friday and today’s word is Stay.
The rule is to write for five minutes without editing the word or topic.
Let the prompt begin.
Stay:
When I bring my dog Emma in I tell her to sit and Stay. She listens to me and obeys and quietly goes back to her blanket and lays down. She doesn’t argue with me nor does she disobey. She stays simply because I am her boss and I tell her to do it.
When someone tells me to do something I bristle. That is the difference between her attitude and mine.
She wants to obey and please me. I perhaps want to please myself.
When I think of God and his faithfulness to us the word stay is a constant.
He will stay with us as long as we want him to.
He walks with us and stays closer than a brother. I have never had a brother so that concept for me is empty but I have had friends and I have had some go and some stay.
Stay is a powerful word.
Stay… don’t leave. Don’t abandon. Don’t walk away.
Stay.
In marriage it is for better or worse.
In friendships it is a heart choice.
For my Emma Rose dog… it is a pleasing attitude to make me happy.
How does the word stay form in your mind?
Is it strong or not so strong?
I will stay with you forever so long as I live and so long as I can…
when I began counselling that was one of the first questions I asked my counselor,
how long are you going to stay around?
It is a logical question.
participating in Lisa Jo’s five minute friday. word challenge.
With a strong hand and an outstretched arm, for his loving kindess is ever lasting. Psalm 136:12 Then I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a man with a measuring line in his hand. Zehariah 2:1
(I was not sure if these verses actually go together but I wanted to use this picture and was not sure how to integrate into a ‘blog post’ hopefully it worked.)
Joining Deidra on jumping tandem and the Sunday community
photo by PapaO from Oregon.
I woke up today feeling a sort of heaviness in my spirit.
Still feeling sadness from the election news and the concern of our future.
I know and realize God is on his throne and is in control
but it still feels incredibly disappointing that we have to deal with more devastating economic issues for the next four years.
I am glad that my hope is not in man or politics.
My intention to write for 31 days last month didn’t work so well.
Through that process I discovered that the zeal for writing is inspired by a stirring in my spirit
not from a challenge placed upon me by other writers.
Writing is hard and sharing from one’s heart even harder.
If I have said that once I will say it many times over.
It cannot be forced or mandated it has to be from a hearts need
to share something deep within.
We are heading into the season of thanksgiving.
I pray we will not fall into the mass thinking that thanksgiving is minimal and Christmas is more important.
We always have things to be thankful for if we look closely.
For me thanksgiving is the most important day and concept.
I am not forgetting the power of the birth of the baby and the Christmas story.
But if we cannot learn to be thankful we won’t appreciate the depth of what God has done for us.
My heart remains heavy for many things and for many reasons.
Will you join me today to slow down.
To breathe in the breath of life you have been given.
To be thankful for all things both good and bad.
The lessons are what we receive in the midst of the journey
no matter how hard the journey has been for us.
Shall we begin today to seek the one who sits on the throne and keeps all order
even though we don’t understand and don’t feel peaceful about the outcome. Today is all we have.
We don’t have yesterday and tomorrow is not given to us yet.
Shall we begin today to give thanks to the one who most deserves it.
1st Corinthians 13: 4-8 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. Love is not rude, is not selfish, and does not get upset with others. Love doesnot count up wrongs that have been done. Love takes no pleasure in evil but rejoices over the truth. Love patiently accepts all things. It always trusts, always hopes, and always endures. Love never ends.
Joining Deidra of jumping tandem and the Sunday Community
Photo taken by Sharon O in Oregon
Thirty nine years ago were were young and barely out of high school.
Not really knowing what we were doing or saying as we stood in the front of that sanctuary.
Many came to watch us say our vows as we stood with fear and uncertainty.
It was a ceremony that changed us.
For the good and for the rest of our lives.
In the years to follow we made a family.
A son came then a daughter.
Then they both married and had sons and daughters making us grand parents.
It has been both challenging and beautiful.
We have had scary times and fun times.
We have learned throughout the years each others personalities and humor.
God has strengthened us when we felt weak and didn’t think we could go any further and
he kept us walking towards the goal of being a family and a team.
I am grateful you have stood by me in my worst days and kept the promise to love me.
It has been a journey we never could have prepared for.
No books can tell you what life is like day in and day out.
It is a commitment.
It is life of hope.
Shall we try for another thirty nine years?
Thanksgiving.
It means to be grateful and full of thanks.
A time for us to sit and think and find a reason
for reflection. Everyday we do have many things to be thankful for.
We have breath and life, and hope and love.
We have family and friends and health and blessings.
Today on this first day of this season of thanksgiving.
May we ‘find a reason’ for reflection and gratitude
for everything God has given us.
Giving thanks with a grateful heart today.
One Word 2018 Simplify/2019 Simplify/2020 Rest, 2021/Comfort
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Philipians 4:13
I can do everything through him who gives me strength. ==================== Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow." Courage is not the absence of fear but it's taking action in the midst of it. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A diamond is a chunk of coal that made good under pressure.
It's your heart, not the dictionary that gives meaning to your words. Matthew 12:34 (msg) version.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Below you will find a few of my favorite websites or blogs. They have given me encouragement and challenged me on this journey.
Ann Voskamp's blog A holy Experience This image of a bleeding heart represents a journey of healing from brokenness to wholeness. Some of my favorite books: One thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp
Married over 46 years and entered into my 65th year of life.
I am a mother of two and grandmother of six and mom to two very spoiled kitties. I love to worship and encourage and of course write whenever I can find a topic or subject to share about.
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Thank you for visiting my blog.
I hope you find it encouraging and that it gives you
'Something to think about'. The vision for this is to challenge the reader into a new and different way of thinking. I appreciate and always value your comments. Having others walk alongside and join in the sharing is part of the process.
Thank you for joining me... on this journey. As we get encouraged ~ Lord help us to encourage others. "And the day came when the risk to remain a tight bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." Anais Nin my blog button The crosses are found on a beach at Winema Christian Camp on the Oregon coast.. a place to relax and find God in the process. My favorite place ....to rest and restore my spirit.
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