No Really… Thank YOU

Thanks always precedes the miracle.

I read this while on a plane to Spain. (where the rain stays mainly on the plain… just saying) It was the beginning of a journey that would teach me my joy and call out hope from the depths of my soul. A journey that would place weapons of spiritual warfare into my little hands and teach me how to wield those weapons with skill and deadly aim. A journey that would bring light to the dark places of my heart and freedom to the places taken captive by hopelessness and despair.

one thousand gifts by Ann Voskamp was the book that started it all. As I read this woman’s journey, I began to understand just how important it is to say ‘thank you’. It seems so silly. So childish. I mean, we remind children to say thank you all the time. We hand them a treat and almost  automatically say ‘what do you say?’. If they’ve been taught, they reply with a ‘thank you’ and quickly demolish what they’ve been given. Simple, right?

But so deep. If you read the Bible, start looking for words such as ‘thankfulness’, ‘thanksgiving’, and ‘thanks’. I am pretty sure it will surprise you.

Say thank you for trials.

                                                    Say thank you for the past.

                        Say thank you for what is to come.

Say thank you for His unfailing love.

It’s all over the place. It sounds so easy. And in some ways it is… yet in the moment it can be the hardest thing to turn from anxiety and insecurity to that place of saying thank you. I have started the process. I am far from being thankful in every moment, but I am learning on a daily basis how to say thank you and I am beginning to look for those little moments of life that are so simple and yet speak of His deep, deep love for me.

And when I notice them, something shifts in me. When I say thank you there is suddenly evidence that God really is brilliant and really DOES do good things. My thank you solidifies the goodness of God in my heart and teaches me to live in the moment seeking out His promises for right now. The thank you in my heart renews my faith and confidence that He can and does provide for me in every minute.

I have started writing them down. Which means, being the organized person that I am, I currently have lists of thankfulness in 4 different notebooks. haha! So here are some of my favorites 🙂

~Sneaking in last stolen moments of shut-eye before gorgeous morning runs~

 

~No-bake cookies that give cavities~

~Trees that lift their hands to praise their Creator~

~”Shame off you, babe” voice of God spoken into spirit.~

~Too many tears of joy to count~

~Skinny Europeans eating donuts and breads all day long.~

~Sky-blue sky~

~Slivered gold moon captivating at wee hours of the morning~ 

~Finding my voice even in outward silence~

~Glasses of wine shared as new wine flows in form of laughter and life and words~

 

        

~A life lived adventurous in every moment~

~One bright pin-point star in dusk-almost-dark evening, thick with peace~

~Breakfast for dinner that pulls us out of the box~

~Wind tugging strands of hair to dance in praise and delight on the wings of the One who has counted every strand.~

~English accents on Amercan tongues~

~Me-monster thoughts and words fleeing as joy brings peace.~

~Dashes of blood-red flowers mixed in with the green life of leaves.~