A Devotional for Thanksgiving Day

In EVERY Thing
A Thanksgiving Day devotional written by Becky Melby

Your mother-in-law will be here in two hours with her green Jell-O with cottage cheese in it. The four-year-old has the sniffles and the baby woke three times during the night—which is why you overslept and just put the turkey in. The kitchen floor is sticky, the windows are smudged, and you’d hoped to paint the guest room before Thanksgiving. The pumpkin pies are crispy on top because your teenaged daughter had her earphones in when the timer went off. The tablecloth needs ironing so you ask her to do it. Now the corner of the cloth is scorched. Needing a break, you check Facebook and read a scathing remark from your sister. While you were fighting with the giblets in the half-frozen turkey, your husband sucked up too many Legos with the vacuum cleaner and the belt broke. Now the house smells like burnt pies, tablecloth, and rubber and—help!—the breakfast the four-year-old just threw up. 

Time to cancel Thanksgiving. The last thing in the world you want to do is give thanks. Or host a dinner. If only you could push a magic button and transport yourself back to a simpler time.

Let’s push that button. You’re now living in a tiny house in an idyllic seaside town. The air is crisp and clean. The nights are starlit and quiet. You’re living green here—your husband and a few of the neighbor men built your one-room house using only things found in nature. Your home is heated by a fire in the hearth, which is also where you do your cooking. And today there will be a lot of cooking. Because today is a feast day. The whole town is gathering to celebrate the harvest. You glance at the bounty on the rough-hewn table. Potatoes, pumpkins, onions. Cooking on a spit over the fire is the pheasant you plucked before dawn. Life is simple. Life is good. Your heart is full. There is so much to thank God for. You have a roof over your head. Food on the table. Friends. Family . . .

In a place like this you could give thanks, right? No distracting electronics, no malfunctioning appliances. No daughter texting. No green Jell-O.

Here, your heart is full to overflowing with gratitude—to the God who protected you and your husband and daughter through the long, bitter winter and brought new friends who taught you how to survive in this new place. You give thanks to Almighty God for being your comfort on the arduous journey that brought you here and for His Presence when the baby died on the ship and when you buried your four-year-old in the frozen ground. You are grateful for your widowed mother-in-law who lives with you, grateful for the company of another woman. Life is hard, but this you know—God is good. Your daughter is doing her needlework. You pull your shawl closer, pick up the stump of a candle, and walk across the dirt floor to read the verses she’s stitching: Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing; In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

And once again—in spite of grief, in spite of the wind that whispers of another hard winter, in spite of fear—you rejoice and give thanks for today’s provision and the hope of heaven tomorrow.

The comparison is sobering, isn’t it? I’m sure there were Pilgrims who whined and complained, but I wonder how many of us, people who moan and groan at mere inconveniences, would choose to mark the end of a year of hardship and loss by giving thanks. That first feast was not held because of tradition or family obligation, but a genuine desire to rejoice and give thanks to God for salvation and provision.

Thanks-giving is a choice, isn’t it? A way of looking at life that has little to do with our circumstances. Life is far from perfect, yet still we can choose to remember God is good. We can choose thanks-giving.

Lord, today we choose to remember your goodness. Today, with your help, we choose gratitude over grumbling.

~*~
Author bio:

Burlington, Wisconsin author Becky Melby writes Contemporary Christian Fiction. Do You Know What I Know? is her sixteenth book. 

Married for 44 years, mother of four, grandmother to fifteen, Becky thrives on writing, reading, camping, rides on the back of a silver Gold Wing, and time with family. 

Connect with her online at these sites, www.beckymelby.com or Facebook.

Words of Faith: Bonnie's story about her mom, hope and gratitude

A Living Treasure

A Words of Faith story by Bonnie Leon

My mother has always seen the world through eyes of hope and gratitude. When I was young, she was a hands-on type of mother who played and worked alongside her family. I have precious memories of her rounding the bases during one of our family baseball games, picking huckleberries with us in the High Cascades, and swing dancing at her eightieth birthday party.

Mom is ninety-one now. She no longer plays ball or picks berries or dances. She spends most of her time indoors at an assisted living center.

Four years ago Mom’s life took an unexpected turn. As a child she survived rheumatic fever, but was left with a damaged heart valve. Somehow or other, that valve held up through the years, until at age eighty-seven, she was told it needed to be replaced or she would die. Mom was pragmatic about the diagnosis and decided to do all she could to live. She’d get the valve replaced, and either she would die or be returned to good health. What she hadn’t counted on was the in-between place.

The surgery was a success, but shortly afterward she contracted a staph infection in the incision. It nearly killed her. For more than five months she lived in a nursing home, on IV antibiotics and a wound vac. She became a shadow of the woman who had gone into surgery months before. But finally, she fought off the infection. Things were looking up.

Tragically, the day before she was to be released, her husband died. In the middle of the night, my husband and I raced up the freeway. Mom needed us. We found her in the hallway, hunched over in a wheelchair, a frail vapid remnant of the woman I’d known.

The days to follow were not typical for our family. We were familiar with death and funerals, but we didn’t know what to do with Mom. Her four children lived far from her home and she needed help. In the end, it was decided that the best place for her was here in Oregon, close to me. So we sold many of her things, packed up the rest, and moved Mom an assisted living center in Roseburg, Oregon. It was a painful transition, but Mom rallied and was her old self—hopeful and full of thankfulness.

My life changed. I oversaw Mom’s finances, housing, medical care, and many of her emotional needs. I’d become the mother. Though the circumstances were difficult, life shared with Mom was also full of blessings. I became acquainted with my mother in ways I never had before. Each day, my admiration for her grew. She was and is a woman of grace and gratitude. Every time I saw her she made sure to tell me how much she loved me. She’d take my face in her hands, smile up at me, tell me how much she loves me and thank me for taking such good care of her. It’s an amazing gift to be deeply loved.

Four years have passed and Mom’s health is failing. She’s extremely frail, can’t walk, and has dementia, which makes it difficult for her to hang onto who she is, who her family is. I’m waiting for the day when I walk in and she doesn’t recognize me. It will happen, just not yet.

Sometimes Mom asks me why I think she’s still living. She can’t see any good reason to be hanging around. She’s lost sight of her own value. She doesn’t realize that the love she extends to those around her is priceless. Even in her present condition she is always kind. She lives with a good deal of pain and is completely dependent on others, but is still grateful for her life and appreciates the smallest pleasures. And still, on most visits, she gives me a bright smile and tells me how much she loves me. 

Mom’s life is still precious and is as valuable as it ever was. Until the Lord takes her home she will serve Him simply by the way she lives. Getting old is really hard, but it doesn’t devalue who we are. We shall remain treasures even to the end. May we never forget that about ourselves and those who watch over us.

~*~
Author bio:  

Bonnie Leon is the author of twenty-one novels, including the recently released To Dance With Dolphins, the popular Alaskan Skies and bestselling The Journey of Eleven Moons.

Bonnie’s books are being read internationally and she hears from readers in Australia, Europe, and even Africa.

She enjoys speaking to women’s groups and teaching at writing seminars and conventions. She especially delights in mentoring young authors. These days, her time is filled with writing, being a grandmother and relishing precious time with her aged mother.

Bonnie and her husband, Greg, live in Southern Oregon. They have three grown children and seven grandchildren.

~*~

Connect with Bonnie:
Website - https://www.bonnieleon.com
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/BonnieLeonAuthor
Blog - https://www.bonnieleon.blogspot.com
Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/bonnieleon/ 

Words of Faith: What to do when you're in a bad mood

Jesus and My Bad Mood Day
A Words of Faith Story written by Sherri Stone

So it happened…I woke up one morning in a bad mood. No reason. Just irritable and mad at my husband who wasn’t even awake yet. I rammed my little toe into the dresser, spilled water on the floor, dropped my make-up brush into the sink and got it wet. My hair was, well, my hair. I’m overweight and short and I need new shoes. And underwear – it’s falling apart and that’s got to be someone’s fault. And why is there nothing sweet in this entire house? And what happened to the…

You get the picture. Not pretty. Not a tragedy. Not even close. Just a bad mood day. But mighty ugly.

I had just finished a month of fasting that was so amazing. God taught me so much during that time and I was learning to trust him in a deeper way than ever before. I felt like I’d accomplished something together with God. And now this. No huge obstacle or terrible thing to challenge my trust in God. Just a really bad mood. I sat down that morning, partly because it seemed dangerous to keep moving around, and partly because I felt so defeated. By my own mood. How ridiculous. How immature. How very sad.

Then God spoke to my heart. Invite me into this day. Into this mess. Invite me in. So I did. I repeated the prayer I’d prayed so often during my fast. It doesn’t feel good or right. It doesn’t even feel like you’re there. BUT I CHOOSE TO TRUST YOU.

My bad mood lasted all day. Everything irritated me and I have no idea why. But God was there. Right in the middle of my mood and my mess. He didn’t fix it. He didn’t even fix me. He just walked with me that day because I shared it with him. Over and over that day my thoughts turned to God and I knew he was there. He wasn’t intimidated by my bad mood. I vented all the way to work and all the way home. He listened. He didn’t change anything that day, but he never left me. And that changed me. It made me grateful.

We are so quick to pick up the phone and call or text a friend or our family when we’re having a bad day. We Tweet and post on Facebook as if the world really cares and wants to hear it. We invite everyone in except the One who can and will stick with us in a way no other mortal being can. I’m not saying we shouldn’t share with our friends. They are gifts from God to walk with us through life, but God wants that privilege first.

God is there for the tragedies of our lives and that’s when we are quick to call on him. But he wants to be Lord of our bad mood days, too. I was guilty of thinking that since it was my mood it had to be my fault, therefore God had to be disappointed in me. I metaphorically sent myself to my room without supper until my attitude got straightened out. The problem with that is, I was cutting myself off from the very One who could change that attitude. He didn’t let me get away with that this time. He gently pushed his way into my bad mood day and simply lived it with me. Now I find myself on those days saying, I don’t know what’s wrong with me today but I’m glad you’re here with me. I also realized that the only thing about that day that could separate me from God was me.

It is a powerful thing to build that kind of history with Jesus. If we practice that on good days, and on the bad mood days, when the big challenges come we will be ready to trust Him with those too, with a deeper trust, and a deeper knowledge of who he is and why He does what He does.

It’s not about doing anything for Him. It’s about living life with Him. And that is the sweetest thing of all. 

~*~
Author bio: 

Sherri is a social worker by day and a writer by night. 

Her debut fiction novel, Sacred Ashes, was released last year and is available through Amazon and Barnes and Noble. 

More fiction and some non-fiction inspirational books are in the works and she is looking forward to finding God’s purpose for her next fifty years. 

Connect with Sherri:
Website - sherristone.net
Blog - hospiceheartbeats.com
Facebook - sherrilynnestone
Twitter - @sherristone2
Pinterest - pinterest.com/sherriston

Thankful Thursday: God's Blessings

It's Thursday and I'm thankful for God's blessings! 

My reflections today will be short and sweet:

God blesses me and you in so many wonderful ways, whether we know it or not.

He's always there for us. He provides for our very need. He takes joy in seeing us happy and content in His provision.

God showers me with His blessings in so many wonderful ways! He gives me the gift of time. He's blessed me with family who cares and true friends who are there for me. God surprises me sometimes with unexpected blessings (those are the best)!

My gratitude for all God's blessings tonight are beyond words.

All I can say to you is, listen to the song "Give Thanks" (see video above this message), then spend time reflecting on what God has done for you and give thanks! :)

Take care and God bless you!

Sincerely,

Alexis