Gratitude in the Air

I had a morning appointment yesterday...and afterward Edster and I and the furry boys went for a road trip to Mrs. Yoder's Kitchen in Mount Hope, Ohio.

Arthur took his normal seat...

Most leaves were down...lots of brown, beige, neutrals on a cloudy day...lots of leaf blowers going. And in Amish country where they can still burn leaves...there was a blue haze in the air...and the smell was loaded with memories of life after the school day as a child when we burned leaves in the city in the Fall.

Traipsing through the countryside, you could smell Thanksgiving...

The harvested fields made us ponder what we have...

Gratitude is in the air!

The Distraction of Hype

Yesterday was a wonderful day with my daughter and her family at our house...and I took time from the internet and my blog to focus on being present with them and my husband.  So, in the hopes to inspire you, my thought today was to post only three photos...

...that focus on gratitude...

...and remind us (especially me) how we should gratefully live our lives...

but I must also add a statement my daughter, Lydia, said to me during our time yesterday that should make all of us stop and think,

Isn't it ironic that on the day we are to focus on being thankful for all we have, the hype is about getting the meal over to go out and buy more?
 

At what point does it become enough?

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you...as we celebrate it with our lives throughout the next year!

Your Faithfulness

I took this still as part of my 365 project...and this sits on a table next to my piano.

I had no idea how this would turn into something so meaningful in the next 24 hours...

This morning at church there was a lot of focus on gratitude, thankfulness and God's faithfulness...

There was a special song that was sung...I was captivated...moved to tears...especially this line:

I don't know if these clouds mean rain

If they do, will they pour down blessing or pain?
I don't know what the future holds
But I know I can trust Your faithfulness.

- Brian Doerksen
 

You see...this is my father's Bible.  He was asking if I could help him find a personal size with the index tabs (his was wearing out).  I said I would look on the internet...and bought this for him as a gift (he wanted to pay me!).  I bought it for him in 2008.

My dad, in April 2009, was unexpectedly diagnosed with terminal brain cancer...had palliative resection and went through rehab.  We were in shock.

By June he was back at church and publicly praised the Lord for His faithfulness and goodness to Him.  When I heard these lines in the song this morning, it made me think of his trust in his Savior, no matter what the future held, He would be faithful!

On October 9, 2009, he met his faithful Savior face to face...

Here is the song, if you'd like to experience it, too...




This blog, while it touches on many things, its main focus comes from a verse about faithfulness:

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;
  his mercies never come to an end;
 they are new every morning;
  great is your faithfulness.
(Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV)
 

Yes, He is faithful...and ALL is grace!