Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for other bloggers who write ‘Thankful Thursday’ posts, because, to be honest, I’d forgotten about thankfulness and Thursdays....again....until I pulled up my Google reader and saw what others had written today. I am humbled and ashamed when I think about how often I forget to stop and think about thankfulness, especially on Thursdays which seem to be one of my busiest days.

I’m thankful that faith is not dependent on how I feel. Again.

I’m so very thankful for the righteousness that comes from God, the only true righteousness, that depends on faith, not a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but the righteousness that comes through faith in Christ. What an amazing thing. And that is not just words, it is life.

I’m thankful for the book of Philippians and the Partnering to Remember project and the encouragement to hide God’s word in my heart. I’ve started going back and writing out notes on what I’ve memorized, and hope to be able to use it to encourage someone else as opportunity arises.

I’m thankful for periods of ‘the blues’ and for opportunities God uses to draw me close to Him and into His word for the only encouragement that will truly satisfy a sinking heart. And I’m thankful that no matter how low I feel, I will ever find the Rock of Ages upon which faith rests and is sustained. Thanks, Octavius Winslow, for that thought.

I’m thankful for joy that is deeper than momentary, or even longer than momentary, blues. The joy that is rooted in knowing Christ Jesus, the security that I may be found in Him and that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection. The joy that is found in knowing that my hope is sure because it is anchored in Jesus, and I am clothed in His righteousness. Hallelujah, what a Savior!

I’m thankful for reminders, painful ones, that sometimes I feel blue because I’m thinking too much of myself and not enough of others, and more importantly, not thinking highly enough of God and seeking to love Him and seek His Kingdom with all my heart, and that I need to repent and pray for grace and mercy to retrain my thinking and to think biblically and lay aside weights of selfishness and pride that will not only hinder my race, but strangle me, so please, God, have mercy and may I fling those weights aside and run with endurance and live in obedience a life that is worthy of the gospel!

I’m thankful for my husband, who is encouraging me to get moving with my writing. I'm also thankful for my parents' encouragement to write and keep writing the blog, too. I think I’ve been stalled because I’m scared. I’m scared because as long as I stall and only think about writing, I haven’t actually failed at it. Once I start, if I find out I can’t, well, it’s been part of me for so long....

But I’m thankful for my husband’s patient encouragement when I tearfully told him about a deep and secret hurt and fear yesterday regarding my dream to write. He believes I can do it. I don't know why, but he does. And he understands my insecurities in a way no one else can, but he loves me and is cheering me on. He even helped me find my ‘lost’ notebook of unfinished scribblings so that I can, finally, get busy. Even if the only thing I ever write is the story my little boy requested so long ago and only he ever reads it. Even then, at least I will have written it, if I just will get to it, and it will be worth it to be able to write this story before he is too old to care anymore.

I’m thankful for spring and greatly hopeful that it really will be warm consistently here again one day.

Happy Thursday!