Thursday Thankfulness Times Ten

God is good...I believe in thanking God for the good things in our life. I am listing ten things I am thankful for on this Thursday

1. We got the results back on Christopher's growth hormone tests back today via a phone call. His results are NORMAL......are pretty much normal. His hormone is a little low but not deficient! Just as I thought...my little boy is small, fearfully and wonderfully made. He is tiny but he is mighty in faith and joy and compassion.

2. I am getting to babysit more to help hubby with the finances and while at times this wears me out..it helps us.

3. The answers on planting the church are not what my husband wanted but wise. The district wants to close this church and put Mike else where for now until he gets a little more experience under his belt as a pastor. I think this is wise. Mike graduated from Bible university in 2003 and we served as associates for 7 months. Then sat for a while and then Mike took this church a few months ago. Needing more experience before taking on church planting sounds very very wise to me. God speaks to our husbands when we don't know what to say. I am proud of the way Mike handled the words from the official. He did so with humility and grace. Yes, he is disappointed but he showed great maturity and growth in his response. I am proud of him.

4. Mike will still be pastoring this small church for a few more months giving him ample opportunity to preach, his great love. I love watching him preach. His passion and love for the Lord Jesus..literally glows from his eyes.

5. Jennifer is making progress on the potty despite having been so sick this week. She is trying so hard.

6. God is faithful and mighty. He answers prayer......big, small and in between. I know the answer is on the way for some major prayers I have been talking to Him about. I may not SEE the answers yet BUT I KNOW that I KNOW the answers are on the way.

7. I feel like God is doing a new thing in my heart, my family, my husband. Can't quite put a finger on what it is yet, but it is good, very good.

8. Hannah is being less whiney and trying to be a good girl during nap time at Pre-K. She too is showing signs of great faith growing in her precious little heart.

9. We were able to make rent and each month God helps us make ends meet even when it seems there is no way to do so. We are doing good as we can with our budget even when faced with unexpected ER visits and the like. I am not getting into despair about these things and AM learning to leave it in God's hands.

10. I can approach the throne, in the Holy of Holies...the very presence of my King because of my advocate Jesus. I am saved by grace and kept in His mighty hand despite how many times I let my impatience get the better of me and act decidely unlike the Proverbs 31 MOmmy. I am learning and growing daily in Jesus. All of us need to grow daily in Jesus. We can and will never stop learning in HIM.

Perspective, thankfulness faith and joy

Today I was surfing and found a blog about a family who lost their sweet little baby girl after a week to Trisomoy 19. I lost the link because my internet explorer closed down. Anyway, they relished every moment, every coo, every cry with their baby. They knew they would not have her long. The fact she made it to birth was a miracle in itself. But this little girl breathed on her own, and even fed a tiny bit on her own, without a feeding tube. This is beyond a miracle. They talked about their sorrow but also their joy. It put my struggles with my children into perspective! Yes, I face my own hurdles with my son, but the hurdles I face with him are survivable. Yes, I have almost lost my son, but he survived. So, when I complain about his childish, disobedient, stubborn ways, what am I doing. Complaining about something some families would relish in. My children are happy, relatively healthy, growing and prospering. They bring me joy everyday. This family never lost their joy in Jesus throughout their ordeal. Even as they watched their child's life slip further and further away, they relished in the beauty of the gift God had given them in her life. It makes me thankful that God gave me the children He chose to give me. He knew that at such a time as this, Thelma needed, Christopher with all his issues, Hannah with her jealousy and Jennifer with her sleeping troubles. He knew that He could help me be strong to handle each of these small things with His help. But I have to choose to lean on Him. I have to CHOOSE to find joy in the journey. The journey is not always easy but then again, it is not as hard as the journey some people face. I know we all face struggles in our lives as women, mother, women who struggle to even become mothers or mothers whose children live in heaven. I have a child on the other side, lost to early miscarriage. But I am just as much that child's mother as mother to the rest of my children. Yet, in the grand scheme of things there is nothing on this earth I have faced that is as heartbreaking as when the Father looked down on His Son, and had to turn His back on the sin He bore for us. The Son bore it all willingly and the Father turned His back upon the sin because He could not look upon sin. But the joy of a risen Savior far outweighs the sorrow of His death. So I must walk in joy even when I don't feel like walking in joy. My perspective needs to be faith based instead of fear or frustration based. Faith chooses to see the positive despite the circumstances. Faith chooses to see the answer is on the way, even when it doesn't feel like it. Faith is choosing to be thankful for the answer even when it is different than the one you wanted. Perspective, God has a way of changing it and teaching you how to look at things a different way, if you will just let it happen.