A Thankful Heart

Well, it's the eve of the day we like to call Thanksgiving, and my heart is full and overflowing, as is often the case after going to the prayer meeting at church. The Lord has been so good to us this year! It's amazing to think back over the things that have happened, and to see His hand in all of it, supplying our every need. This the first Thanksgiving that I have had a child old enough to understand the celebration, so I have been trying to talk to him about all the things we have to be thankful for. It's a good exercise for me (as most of child raising seems to be so far!), and I'm finding that thankfulness is only a matter of remembrance. We just have to choose to REMEMBER the things the Lord has done, because He has done great things!

So these are some of the reasons my heart is thankful tonight.....................

• I am married to a man who loves the Lord and is serious about his responsibility to be the head of our home. He is so faithful to our family, hardly ever missing a day of work, getting up in the middle of the night with crying babies, doing house projects for weeks on end...there is nothing this guy can't do! And he's gentle and loving... we are so blessed to call him husband and dad.
• Almost 3 years ago the Lord gave us Ethan, and our lives have never been the same. Wild and precocious, he is always the life of the party. But at night, reading books in bed, praying together, and talking about his day, well, it touches your heart. This little one is given to me from the Lord to raise for a short time. What a blessing he is. And hearing your child say, "I wud u, Mommy," is the sweetest thing to a mother's ear.
  
• And Simon is almost 9 months. He is his own person, quick with a smile, more of a mama's boy than Ethan. And I'm loving that and cherishing the snuggles while they last.
• I'm thankful for family members who love the Lord and love us...like Aunt Kim who took Ethan for a day of Chuck E. Cheese and Petland just so I could clean the house for Thanksgiving, or Dave's Mom, who came over for the afternoon and helped mop floors and vaccuum. Lots of girls my age complain about mothers-in-law, but I have it good. She is the ideal mother-in-law! And they are ALL great, both sides of the family... it is such a blessing to have such a godly heritage, and we want to pass it on to our children.
  
• We have a church family that becomes more and more like real family every day. The Lord has been at work, bringing some of us out of our shell, forcing us to open up and share our vulnerabilities with each other...and it has been good. And the Lord is really working here in our town. Souls have been saved this year, and saints have been challenged to live lives more glorifying to our Lord.
• All our physical needs have been met (and then some!), and we are definitely enjoying the benefits of having a rich Father. We have plenty, and we're thankful for it.
• Most importantly, my sins have all been forgiven ONCE AND FOR ALL, and I'm enjoying fellowship with the Lord because of His finished work on the cross. He offers salvation to anyone who believes (Romans 10:9), and I'm so thankful that I came to trust Him when I was young. He is wonderful Savior, and my appreciation of Him keeps growing.
  

Thank you, Lord, for saving me and making me Your child. I love You!