Thankful Thursday

My melancholy continues as I work on letting go of my girl. I know she's 21. I know she's more than ready and able to be on her own. I know that the Lord is leading and directing her steps. I know she's going to be a huge blessing and help to Ivan's parents. I know all this, but you know what, the heart isn't listening very well.

So I decided what I need to do is focus on the things in my life I can be thankful for, and give praise to Jesus! NOTE: These are in no discernible order. It's just my brain thinking randomly.

First of all, I can reiterate what I just wrote. I'm thankful Tina is 21, ready and able to be on her own, will be a huge blessing and help to Ivan's parents, and the Lord is leading and directing her steps. Praise Jesus!

I'm thankful for those who have recently joined our support team! And for those helping toward the outgoing fund. It's exciting and humbling to see how God provides through His people.

Who wouldn't be thankful for a wonderful husband who not only loves me but also desires to see me grow in my walk with God? Several months ago we picked up a chronological Bible and began reading from that day, but now we started at the beginning. No matter how many times you read His Word, there's always something new that jumps out! [So my question today is: Whatever happened to the raven that Noah sent out in Genesis 8:6-7? Did he really just keep going and going until the water had dried up? Without resting? If so, I want what he had!]

Thankful, thankful, thankful for family. I've mentioned my daughter and husband. There's also my son, Jon, and his wife, Natalie. They are such a blessing! Natalie is the one who organized my special birthday trip to see The Nutcracker Ballet. Jon is always helping in various and sundry ways, not the least of which is all his computer expertise. But beyond what they do, I'm just grateful for who they are: a wonderful young couple whose steps are also being directed by God.

There's a special couple in our church who have been such an encouragement, meeting with us every Wednesday when we're all in town (which with our schedules hasn't been as often as we would have liked!). Despite a lot going on in their own lives, they have made a point to engage in ours and to be supportive in so many ways.

The elders in our church have invested in us, helping prepare us for this next step in our ministry, holding us accountable for our time, and working to keep us focused and on track.

Over 150,000 miles safely driven in the last 44 months, with only one small accident when a drunk driver slammed into us even though we had pulled off to the side of the road to get out of his way. Thank you Jesus!

And those are just a few of the things for which I'm thankful. God is good all the time! All the time God is good! Amen.