Joyfull Living

It may be last minute, but I'm sharing the remaining days of November blessings!  As one who loves to begin new projects, challenges and ideas, but struggles to finish, this November counting daily blessings has been completed.   This November instead of seeking daily blessings (which is so important), my desire was to be reminded of the promises of God, mainly in who He is and His attributes.  Here is the remainder of November: November 20: Forgiveness.  Being forgiven by God and overwhelmed enough to pass it on. November 21:  God of Comfort.  No trial is in vain, the comfort given to us, can be shared with others. November 22:  Holy:  God is Holy and the Holiest of all.  Hard to grasp, but brings awe. November 23:  The Fruit of the Spirit.  found in Galatians 5...Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness...the qualities we want to grow in our lives! November 24:  God Reigns...above all November 25: Fai...

This is Thanksgiving week and probably most of our plans will involve family and spending time with our family.  Our families can be our greatest blessings but may be accompanied by great stress.  The smallest tension with our families can quickly escalate into worry, distress and a host of other emotions.  Basically we love and cherish our families and desire their best.  When we see things that distract or derail them from that best, that tension begins.   Although we may try and will probably fail, we cannot 'fix' our family or solve their problems for them. But there is something stronger and more powerful we can do.   Love them unconditionally.  Even if there are areas we do not agree with, we can love them without endorsing or enabling.  Love is a strong bond that runs deep. Model the fruit of the Spirit.  Love, Joy, Peace Patience, Kindness, etc. when evident in our lives will always improve the atmosphere. As mu...

“Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings. By taking deliberate time to count our blessings, it has a very positive affect on our attitudes and actions.  Through my journey of thanking God for who He is, I'm finding those beautiful blessings from Him are to be manifest in us and shared through us.  Here are some powerful things I've found this week: November 14 : God's love.   this is so vast and so mighty, but so basic.. ."and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment.  And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30-31 November 15:  God's Divine Power:  The power of God that is only ascribed to Him, is shared with us, to equip us in our daily life...

We create the atmosphere we will live in with the words we speak. So one of the ways we can change the temperature of our life and our world is by changing what we allow to come out of our mouths. There is a measure of greatness is everyone, simply because God has created each one. Sometimes we need to dig in, but there is such blessing as we find that greatness and encourage others as we speak about it. Every now and again, we may get caught up in the cycle of negativity, only seeing the bad. A critical spirit is easy to catch and spread with horrible results. But the God of mercy can help us deal with and overcome my own critical nature. To bring life to those around us.  Our words matter to our children.  No one has ever criticized their children into better character. May our words be marked with love. Tell them what they did right.  May our words be marked by wisdom. May they leave our presence feeling built up.  It has been said that there ar...

This weekend was one I consider almost perfect. It probably had something to do with the intentional purpose to find blessings.  It worked!  November mornings that included walks, rocking on the porch, good books and quiet time. But this weekend also included a mix social activities and even a trip to a just opened Bass Pro Shop.  Plenty of ways this weekend to count our blessings.  But this weekend also marked the 2 month anniversary of our son's atv accident.  Looking back over the last two months, we cannot help but be overwhelmed with gratitude. The reminders of how in the midst of hard times, God is always with us.  It has always been something I dread to receive bad news out of nowhere.  Even though this happened, many blessings of peace in our hearts, friends and family to support us sustained us.  When you face the sights, sounds and emotions of a hospital stay, you learn to cling to God, to His promises and know that your trust is...

This has been an intense week. While committed to share a blessing about the Lord each day, if there was a week to be distracted, this would have been it!  Much time was spent praying for our nation, followed by begin glued to the television for news about the election.  When the though of 'finally the election is over', upheaval and emotion about the outcome seemed to fly from everywhere.  If our focus or trust leans away from God, hope wanes, trials of life are magnified and confusion reigns. But, Christians have a hope that endures, promises from God's Word to cling to and the ability to trust in the One True God who reigns supremely. So this week, before the craziness of the day would begin, some time in God's Word became not only a blessing, but peace, comfort and strength for the day. November 7 :  Jesus is the Light of the World ..in Him, there is no darkness. November 8:  Jesus is the King of Kings . A commentary quoted..."in Revelati...

What's so important about being fit? Some people love how taking care of their bodies makes them look -toned, healthy, in shape, muscular etc. Others love how fitness makes them feel, energetic, clear headed, strong.  Some do it because it's simply a good thing for the body to do. They may go through the motions of right eating and exercise, just because it's good for them. No matter what the reason, healthy habits are good for you, but an added bonus is if you enjoy them. When you enjoy them, you make these habits a regular part of your daily routine.  Days, weeks, months and years can go by with visible results, but the greatest result may not be seen.  I've been blessed to have a desire and love for fitness along with available time to engage several times a week in it. But a recent family crisis totally derailed the routine.  A son's accident put everything that wasn't absolutely necessary on hold.  Fitness was the last thing on my mind as days ...

Thankfulness is on our minds this month and it seems we try to slow down, look around and count our blessings.  While we work towards attitude of gratitude, it usually sets off a chain reaction. We identify a blessing, feel thankful for it and express our thanks to God.   Truly, God deserves our praise and thanksgiving, but many of our blessings are people and they are all around us.  The old saying, "It's the thought that counts" isn't true. As long as the thought remains in your head, it accomplishes nothing. But when it motivates you to express gratitude to someone, it becomes fruitful and a shared blessing.  Gratitude can be expressed in many languages. Every person in your life has a dominant gratitude language. Learning to speak those languages can improve your relationships at home, at work, and at church. In the process, you'll become a better communicator of the overflowing love of God. Adapted from the 5 Love Languages, here are way...

This was a fabulous weekend to continue 'counting my blessings'!  A short shot of cooler air hit our area which made the weekend feel wonderful.  That in itself is a huge 'Thank You, Lord'!  This was a weekend at home, open windows, cleaning house, no rushing around.  Some call it boring, I love a weekend like this every now and again! November 5 - thankful for morning runs and podcasts.  Was able to log in good distance and listen and grow from 3 podcasts...learning about leadership, missions and God's purpose. November 6 - Sweet hubby had to work the weekend.  Usually on those weekends, the boys and I grab a quick lunch out.  One of my son's friends called and was planning to drop by on Sunday.  Then he asked, is 'your mom cooking'?  What a blessing Sunday lunch is, being able to prepare it and knowing it is more than food, but fellowship and love expressed. 

The first week of November is in full swing and my goal of finding gratitude through God's Word has brought much grace and thankfulness to my heart this week.  It is so true that you usually find what you are looking for. With open eyes and attentive ears, we are more likely to be sensitive and aware. Reading God's Word while searching for one of His characteristics renewed an awareness of how great He is. I'm hoping to keep a running list of November days to correspond with what I'm so thankful for.  Here is this week's list: 1 ,  God is merciful .  Mercy is the result and effect of God's goodness. Mercy is giving something to someone that they don't deserve. When people come to faith, trust and salvation in Jesus Christ, the punishment for their sins is forgiven, all paid for by Him on the cross. This is God's greatest mercy.  Luke 6:36 tells us to ... "Be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful."  This verse reminds me of Go...

It has been said that it is useless to worry about what might happen because the things we worry about most, usually never happen.  It's the situations that slip in while we are worrying that blindside us.  Fearing the unknown or what may could happen has been an issue for me through the years.  As a Christian, I know and believe that God is in total control. As a child of God, I know He loves me and will take care of me, even through hard times. Through a recent crisis, in the midst of all the fears I had, God continually worked things out in a variety of ways. Our family came face to face with one of our greatest fears.  No amount of worrying could have prepared my heart for this, but I learned the only way to get through was to keep walking and keep faith that God was with us. When my focus shifted to thanking Him for all He was doing in the midst of the situation, fear lost its grip.  Faith is the antidote for fear.  A highlight of some...

November is here!  This is my favorite time of the year and November is one of my favorite months.  Fall is in full swing, excitement is building about the upcoming holidays and this month usually sparks a beautiful change in attitude as contentment, kindness and gratitude are on our minds. For years, I've attempted the November challenge of daily coming up with something to be thankful for.  The first two weeks are pretty easy, along with the majority, I'm thankful for faith, family, health, food, jobs, etc.  Once the major blessings are named, it gets a little harder to share every day. This November, I'm going to give something else a try.  God is the Giver of all things and any thanks needs to go to Him first.  Everything flows from Him and it is much more than what He gives, but so much consists of simply who He is. (Prince of Peace, Strong Tower, Mighty God, God of Hope etc.)  His names and attributes remind us of how powerful, how...