Giving Thanks...

Today is Thanksgiving and I have sooo much to be thankful for...So, while I'm at work, I thought I would write some of them down. In my life, I have found it so incredibly heart-healthy to chronicle God's faithfulness. To have something tangible to look back on when times get hard, or the road narrows. In those times, when my heart knows He is good, my mind finds it easier to believe when there's evidence of His hand. This is just such evidence. Happy Thanksgiving, all. You are loved.

I am thankful:
*That I know the Creator of my heart.
*For a family that I would choose to love even if I wasn't related to them.
*For friends that truly love me just the way I am.
*To be living out my passion.
*For the gift of song...for the love of music and art.
*That God has protected my heart more times than I can count.
*For Southern food and tradition.
*For the hard times, because they have made me grateful for the good ones.
*That I am healthy.
*For the hope of things to come: marriage, a family, eternity with my King.
*For the ability to communicate...with my voice...with my life...the love of Jesus Christ.
*For people to look up to and for people who look up to me. Both offer accountability and joy.
*For coffee.
*That my home is a safe place...not just for me, but for other people.
*For my sister. She is my best friend and urges courage out of me that I could not do alone.
*For the Word. Living and active...Guiding my heart and directing my path.
*For the courage to create things!
*For being able to see real love lived out among the married couples I know.
*That one day I will get to live that out as well.
*For transparent conversations spent lying on the living room floor.
*That I am right where I am doing life with the people I love.
*For seasons' change.
*For good books.
*For new babies and for the families that will raise them in a God-loving/God-fearing home.
*For paint. And for what I can do with it.
*For people who aren't afraid to love hard.
*That real Love crosses language barriers.
*For freedom and for those willing to fight for it.
*For a Way to love the way I was meant to.





1 Chronicles 29:11-13:
"Therefore David blessed the LORD in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: "Blessed are you, O LORD, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. 11 Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all. 12 Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. 13 And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name."

Jesus te ama.

I was reunited tonight with some truly amazing women. Women I served with on the mission field of Iquitos, Peru this summer...We shared our latest struggles and joys...our past adventures together...and what the future holds for each of us. It didn't take very long for us to start spilling our hearts. And hearing the excitement in their voices as they spoke of God and His plans, my heart was revitalized. Not that I don't have truly incredible friends that love the Lord with all their heart, because I do (and am deeply grateful)...But because with these girls, I share a very unique bond. We share Peru. And what God did in each of our hearts there is only magnified as we commune.

Julie, my roommate on the trip and dear friend, made a fantastic video documenting our journey. And I sat on my couch tonight with tears in my eyes as I watched. For several reasons... 1. I was overwhelmed at simply seeing some of those precious faces again. 2. My heart was overjoyed. Because I was witnessing all over again what it was like to care about nothing but the gospel of Jesus Christ. Being out of your comfort zone with nothing but the faith that God will speak and move through you will do that to a person. 3. Lastly, I was so moved because I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the mission of Christ's gospel will ALWAYS be present in my life. And unless I am physically unable to make the trip every year, I will hit the ground running the race in Peru summer after summer. Because the people there need Christ. And the ones that already know and love Him refresh my spirit in ways that I am sure they are unaware of.

So I praise God tonight. For opening my eyes to the beauty of His gospel. For saving my sick and dying soul. And for giving me the strength, and passion, and ability to go and tell that story. Boldly and sincerely.

Thank you Peru for teaching my heart what love looks like...In a way that I will be forever changed by experiencing. See you again in July. In the meantime, know that Jesus te ama.

Luke 10:2: "...And He said to them, The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."