This Thanksgiving is different from others not because I am less thankful but because life has been impacted by the pandemic. More time at home. More time to look at photographs, slides, and photo albums. More time to remember and consider the reasons for giving thanks.
I have always loved celebrating Thanksgiving. Sitting with family around the table and each thoughtfully naming 3 reasons to be thankful. Then holding hands and praying. This year my list of thanks is quite long and I keep adding to it.
I am thankful for my parents’ loving example..
I am thankful for my sister who shared a Campus Crusade tract with me so I could know Jesus as my Lord and Savior.
I am thankful for my husband and his steadfast love, patience, and sense of humor.
I am thankful for our four amazing children. Each one has taught me so much.
I am thankful for our ten grandchildren and one great-grandchild (so far). Each one is amazing and will positively touch the world.
I am thankful for my extended family, though living far away, we are still connected.
I am thankful for our church and the many years God has allowed us to pastor His flock in Grants Pass, Oregon. I am thankful for our faithful church family. We pray together, laugh together, and cry together.
I am thankful for the many friends I have been fortunate to know and enjoy through the years. Friends that challenged me to be better. Friends who love without asking for anything in return.
I am thankful for this beautiful world which God created. Each season is alive for our senses to enjoy the color, feel, smells, sights, and sounds. A thankful heart is a happy heart.
According to Amazon books, the most often highlighted words are from the Bible in Philippians 4:4-7. Peace and thankfulness can be found in these verses.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.