thankful

I’m thankful for everything this Thanksgiving…yeah I know generic, but here are the moments that weren’t so generic to me.

Maybe it was the day I watched my brother marry his best friend with utter joy all over his face.

I’m thankful for all those phone calls…probably thousands and thousands of minutes of just being mentored by my family over the phone.

Today there was two of my cousins’’ families who had an empty place at the table. I remember so well Thanksgiving Day last year going to their house and seeing the table full of family…and before Christmas my uncle was home with the Lord. The painful separation here on earth will be forgotten as we worship together in glory someday. Christ died so we may live and I'm so grateful.

I saw the grace of God when the dean of women made me an RA. Only by God’s grace I have been able to fulfill this role and only God’s grace prepared me for this time…I’m thankful.

When I go to bed exhausted I’m grateful for every moment I get to spend with the girls at school with spirits so sweet that I can hardly stand it.

A new message in my inbox warms my heart when it’s not just another spam, but a real letter with tidbits dripping with encouragement.

When I get make a big mess and scrub a sink full of dishes I couldn’t be more thankful to do what I love to do.

Friendships have gone deeper than I ever imagined and it has been so sweet to laugh and freely share anything.

Over and over again this year I was thankful for every single time when I didn’t know what was going to happen, but I knew God was in control. Sure enough every time He was faithful.

All these moments happened by God’s grace…so just maybe that is what I am most thankful for.

...handsome blessings

This Thanksgiving I'm thankful for so many things...but there is a certain topic that is going to make a blog post.

My 3 very big brothers.

I think they are witty, full of funny ideas and just very amusing in general.

Yet, are so very serious about  God, life, their families, and even their little sister.

These are the boy who were a threesome until one day came along their baby sister.  Even though this little girl was quite stubborn and rather rude at times they never stopped loving her. Then one day I saw the friends that had been there along.

I quote my brothers and talk to them about nearly everything and yes I think they are quite stellar.

There are many things that could be shocking to a young lady, but when you have brothers life is just looked at in a different way.

So I'm glad for what God did. Giving my parents a baby and giving me the best brothers ever.

Yes these are three of my handsomest blessings this Thanksgiving. 

Lose to Gain

Source: moneysavingmom.com via Chantel on Pinterest

This week I will not spend Thanksgiving with my family. A very long stretch of highway will keep me from spending hours in the kitchen to make food for the people I love. Miles prevent me from laughing with my nieces and nephews. My brothers and I won't play football or play hid and seek. I will talk on the phone with my parents instead of face to face. All this I will miss because I chose to go to Bible school

I could not be more thankful to be here at school.

Yes, to sleep in dorms that are sterile and anything but homey. To be kept awake but shrieks of giggles.

Get up at an earthly hour to sit for hours in class. Read thousands of pages of text and write words upon words late into the night for the paper due in a few hours.

To be stressed when there is too many projects due on one day.

And than in the midst of school life requires you to stop school and deal with problems causing a person to stay up far to late to make up the slack.

Yes all this I am thankful for, because right this very minute people are being brutally tortured because they studied God's Word.

Because when I went away I lost some things, yet gained so many friends.

I realized how I stupid I was and how great God's Word is with so much to learn.

All this to be thankful for... and so I forget what I have lost.