Thankfulness

During the fall I set up a Tree of Thanks in the kitchen with plenty of paper leaves, markers, and tape close by.  It started when the kids were little when we wanted to grow in them a Thankful Heart.  Now the kids bug me until it is up.  It is a tradition that I am happy to foster in my kids.

Most of the time when we added leaves back then the item on the leaf was fairly standard.  Things you would expect a preschooler or elementary age kid to be thankful for.  But as they have aged we have put perimeters on what they could be thankful for on that given day.  For instance, one night we might say, "Think of a friend that you are thankful for so we can add them to our tree."  The next night we might say, "Think of a thing, not a person, that you are thankful for."  And so on.  Things that made the list as areas of thankfulness include:family members, something in nature, teachers, and places.  

Some of my favorite leaves over the years have been "forks" and "electricity".  Both in response to the "things" category and both equally surprising coming from my children who were at the time under the age of 8 and who have never done without either.  I am fond of forks and particularly thankful for electricity as well but never thought to thank God for those things.  I am so glad I have kids to help me remember the important stuff.

As the children have aged we started branching out in the category department.  This year we added "characteristic of God."  This is what the kids added:

"Guards our hearts and minds"

"Provider"

"Joy and Awesomeness"

God is so gracious to give me two of the most wonderful kids on the planet.  And to allow me to praise Him and thank Him right along side of them.  I think next week we are going to add "experiences" to our categories.  That should be interesting!

"Give thanks to the LORD for He is good!

His faithful love endures forever."

Psalm 136:1

Re-runs

Living through the battle of life is tedious and sometimes boring.  I wonder how many wars were lost because of shear boredom?  When you are in the thick of it is easy to rally your forces and fight back.  When the enemy engagement lingers and stretches on to time indefinite it is so much the harder to keep up that fight. 

I think one of Satan's particular talents is patience, he has been waiting till before time began to avenge his fallen nature on God.  He can wage war on us it seems sometimes forever.  And just when you think the battle is over, even without a ticker tape parade, a skirmish on the outskirts draws your attention.

This is my life at present: the lingering into time indefinite stage of the battle.  Oh, I know that Christ has won the War (capital "W", the Big One, the Once and for All).  I know that Satan will be defeated completely at the time of Christ's Second Coming and, even more, that Christ defeated him totally on the cross 2,000 years ago.  I see evidence of this defeat in my daily life but Satan, like a mosquito caught in the car, is annoying and hard to kill on my own.

So this is the current (and it seems indefinite) battle...leaning on God's amazing power and ability and glorious riches instead of on man made escapes that really aren't escapes.  Do you remember the mask I posted several weeks ago?  The weed on the back represented the things God is pulling up by the roots in me.  This is one of them, my attempt to create my own rest when if I would just rest in God, He would be my shalvah.  I feel like a broken record but there it is.  

God is my shalvah.  He is my leisure, my rest, my hope, my strength, my victory even in the most lingering of battles!

"This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: 'In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.'"

Isaiah 30:15

Oh, to have all of it instead of none.  To make God my rest and my strength.  To sacrifice to Him a repentant heart and a quiet soul.  You are my salvation, O Lord.  I trust in You!