A CD was on yesterday as I did housework. A particular verse of a song by Steve and Vicki Cook called I Count It All Joy resonated, and like Lucy listening to Mr. Tumnus play, it made me want to laugh and cry all at once.
Lord, I'll count it all joy
When the weight of sorrow
Drives me to my knees.
Every heartache and pain,
In Your mighty hand,
Is forming Christ in me.
Weight of sorrow driving me to my knees. Heartache forming Christ in me. Psalm 57:2(KJV) says "I will cry God most high, unto God that performeth all things for me." Yes, he performs the incredible, astounding act of forming Christ in me. Giving me a oneness with God, returning me to my Edenic state. Can I count it all joy, can I give thanks in every circumstance? This truth crept up on Ann Voskamp walking down the aisle of a grocery store, "... eucharisteo (thanksgiving) always precedes the miracle." What miracle? Sometimes small miracles, sometimes big miracles, BUT ALWAYS the miracle of CHRIST BEING FORMED IN ME.
My last little baby, at 18 months, just figured out how to climb out of his crib. Small miracle. One that makes me ache with the beauty of it. How blessed I am to have a healthy child with stong limbs and an active, exploring mind that tries new things. A beautiful thing... with the ache of knowing that he is growing up. The beauty and the blessing is mine, but so is the pain. Something that makes me want to laugh and cry all at once.
My Saviour, 2000 years ago, submitted himself to the Father's plan, was scourged and beaten, and fulfilled his destiny of making a way for my reunion with God. THE MIRACLE. Thru himself, he is now being formed in me. The beauty and the blessing is mine, the pain was his. The magnitude cannot be comprehended... "which things the angels desire to look into." 1 Pet. 1:12 Something that makes me want to laugh and cry all at once. Laughter with joy, and tears of thanksgiving.
Can I give thanks in all things, can I count it all joy? When I behold the beauty of my Saviour, my whole inner being, aching for the Day of fulfillment, urges, compels my answer: YES.
No one reads this blog except me, who writes it, and my mother (so much is encompassed in that one little word - mother). At least right now. If these words are only written to draw my own heart to my Saviour, I rejoice. Beholding the beauty of my Savior is worth the cost of crafting them.
There is a conference called She Speaks, the purpose of which is to connect the hearts of women to the heart of their Father in heaven. There is a scholarship available to attend this conference, the details of which are here. Should God ever use my words to encourage others and bless them, then my fruit is multiplied. But I am not responsible for the result, only to my calling of faithfulness.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Silver Linings or Refined Treasures
As I am purposefully practicing the grace of giving thanks, having been spurred to such action by Ann Voskamp's book One Thousand Gifts, I had my own little personal epiphany last night.
I was tired and a bit weary, nothing overwhelming, just regular life at the end of the day. I was aware that my attitude was stuggling and I thought to put to use the good advice of giving thanks. When one of my munchkins got up - again - and asked for some water, I found myself leaning over the sink, filling her little sippy cup and thinking to myself, "Well, I suppose I can be grateful that my children like to drink water, some children only like juice or pop." It was a slim sliver of a silver lining.
And then I began to think on it some more. I did not want my thanksgiving to be ridiculous. Not that giving thanks for small things is ridiculous, but I don't want to be this chipper, bubbly optimist in the face of all odds. If our car breaks down, I don't want "to look at the silver lining" that at least it wasn't our house that burned down. After all, the car IS more easily replaced. This kind of thinking to easily deteriorate into a "No matter how bad things get, THEY COULD ALWAYS BE WORSE" mindset. Can something be accurate and not truthful? Maybe. The "It could always get worse" mindset (or perhaps mindtrap) can be accurate, but it robs God of his deserved glory and us of our joy.
As I truly look at my day, I don't want to see the silver linings. I don't want to be satisfied finding the doggie scraps. I am on the lookout for the refined treasures. For the feast. He prepares a table for me, can I find it? (Ps. 23) I want to give thanks for the circumstances, knowing that every individual circumstance is from GOD'S HAND... and HE IS FOR ME. My day, my cup, is full to overflowing with moments that are ordained for my sanctifying, that can lay up treasure for me in heaven. This is the life for me. TRUE THANKSGIVING.
I was tired and a bit weary, nothing overwhelming, just regular life at the end of the day. I was aware that my attitude was stuggling and I thought to put to use the good advice of giving thanks. When one of my munchkins got up - again - and asked for some water, I found myself leaning over the sink, filling her little sippy cup and thinking to myself, "Well, I suppose I can be grateful that my children like to drink water, some children only like juice or pop." It was a slim sliver of a silver lining.
And then I began to think on it some more. I did not want my thanksgiving to be ridiculous. Not that giving thanks for small things is ridiculous, but I don't want to be this chipper, bubbly optimist in the face of all odds. If our car breaks down, I don't want "to look at the silver lining" that at least it wasn't our house that burned down. After all, the car IS more easily replaced. This kind of thinking to easily deteriorate into a "No matter how bad things get, THEY COULD ALWAYS BE WORSE" mindset. Can something be accurate and not truthful? Maybe. The "It could always get worse" mindset (or perhaps mindtrap) can be accurate, but it robs God of his deserved glory and us of our joy.
As I truly look at my day, I don't want to see the silver linings. I don't want to be satisfied finding the doggie scraps. I am on the lookout for the refined treasures. For the feast. He prepares a table for me, can I find it? (Ps. 23) I want to give thanks for the circumstances, knowing that every individual circumstance is from GOD'S HAND... and HE IS FOR ME. My day, my cup, is full to overflowing with moments that are ordained for my sanctifying, that can lay up treasure for me in heaven. This is the life for me. TRUE THANKSGIVING.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Why the title?
I am thanking God right now that we are so blessed in this age of prosperity and the printing press to have access to the wonderful and godly thoughts of others, that fuel our own thought trains. I picked up the book One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp about a week ago, in addition to my regular Bible reading and the mass of reading I do to prep for homeschooling. Thank you God for a well-fed mind. One with rich, nutritious food for my soul.
If you haven't read One Thousand Gifts yet, it IS wonderful and provocative. It is all about giving thanks as a means to glorify God and receive grace in our lives.
Today while reading, I was put in mind of something I read years ago -I can't find the exact quote at the moment- the gist of which is that we wear paths in our souls (and our childrens' souls) by our actions. I remember reading it mostly in light of my children's actions. I was inspired at the time to be diligent to train my children in self-control, obedience, and choosing the interests of others over themselves in the hopes of these things becoming common trails on their hearts.
It struck a different chord today in light of Ann's book. I want to model for my children the habit of thanksgiving. I want to train my children to have a well-worn soul path of gratitude. I have walked that path for distances in my own life before straying into critizism and complaint. I want to more faithfully keep to the path. And as my children follow me in the daily movements, I pray their souls will follow mine in the path of gratitude. And hopefully in my life and in theirs it will become a well-trod, familiar walk, and by God's grace, one less-strayed from in the future.
If you haven't read One Thousand Gifts yet, it IS wonderful and provocative. It is all about giving thanks as a means to glorify God and receive grace in our lives.
Today while reading, I was put in mind of something I read years ago -I can't find the exact quote at the moment- the gist of which is that we wear paths in our souls (and our childrens' souls) by our actions. I remember reading it mostly in light of my children's actions. I was inspired at the time to be diligent to train my children in self-control, obedience, and choosing the interests of others over themselves in the hopes of these things becoming common trails on their hearts.
It struck a different chord today in light of Ann's book. I want to model for my children the habit of thanksgiving. I want to train my children to have a well-worn soul path of gratitude. I have walked that path for distances in my own life before straying into critizism and complaint. I want to more faithfully keep to the path. And as my children follow me in the daily movements, I pray their souls will follow mine in the path of gratitude. And hopefully in my life and in theirs it will become a well-trod, familiar walk, and by God's grace, one less-strayed from in the future.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)