So December was a crazy month and many times I found myself caught up in the busyness. One day at the beginning of this month, as I came home from one of our many events, I sat down on our living room couch and just took a deep breath. I found myself just thanking the Lord for a warm, cozy home to come home to and find refuge from the busyness of life. It then dawned on me that in all matters, big and small, I should be praising His name and I felt convicted for getting too wrapped up in the things of this world. This time of the year is supposed to be focused on the precious gift of His life and I was too busy doing and going and wrapping and buying and decorating and baking and...the list goes on.
I was thankful for that small moment because it put things in perspective for me and reminded me that in all things I should worship Him. Every thing that we do, every breath that we take, every moment of our lives, is a moment to worship our Creator, the One who gave us that very moment. As the month of December went on my spirits began to change and I made a deliberate effort to be thankful for each moment. These are a few I took note of over the past month:
Jesus Christ came as a baby to be raised up in this horrible world, to suffer at the hands of those He created and loved, to die for the sins of all mankind, to save a wretched sinner like myself, so that I may be saved from eternal damnation, intimately know Him, walk with Him and spend an eternity alongside Him as His child!! ~1 John 3:1- What great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!
Because of Christ sacrifice, and God's love for us, I have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit to convict me, to draw me close to the Lord, to guide me, to provide peace, to empower me, to intercede for me. ~John 14:26- "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you."
I have been blessed to have a home with warmth, water and food. I get so caught up in my American mindset that I forget I am not entitled to those things, I have been given those things because of the grace of my Provider! So much of the world goes without anything, dying because they go without the very things I take for granted everyday. ~ Matthew 6:31-33: Do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'...your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things shall be given to you as well.
I am beyond thankful for my adoring husband and the gift of his very life. He is my best friend and I am so grateful to be able to share every moment of this life with him. While marriage is definitely not a walk in the park, I am so thankful that I have a husband that will work through the issues and the hard times with me. I am so thankful that the Lord has blessed me with marriage and the beautiful things I learn daily about my relationship with the Lord through my earthly relationship with my husband. What beauty He has intended for our earthly marriages and what wonderful lessons we learn about our Father's love through the gift of marriage. ~Isaiah 62:5 & 12: "As a young man marries a young woman, so will your Builder marry you; as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you...[you] will be called the Holy People, the Redeemed of the Lord; and you will be called Sought After..."
I praise Him for my healthy family and the gift of fellowship. What a blessing that everyone is safe and nearby, that I have sisters that are such close friends and parents that have raised me to know the Lord and have loved us unconditionally. ~Proverbs 17:17- A friend loves at all times and a brother (or sister) is born for adversity.
It's easy to get overwhelmed with the crazy life of youth ministry, but Jacob and I constanly remind each other that it's the Lord we are serving and what a blessing to be able to be a part of His ministry. We feel incredibly blessed that God would use us in any way as imperfect vessels for His glory. We are constantly reminded of the purpose of our lives and learn valuable lessons through the lives of our teenagers. I so often forget to worship the Lord when the kids come to us with so much pain and heartache, but He is so faithful to give me beautiful glimpses of Himself through their words and actions. To be allowed to see into some of their most intimate thoughts and feelings is such a privelge and it blesses both Jacob and I to even be a part of their growth. What incredible moments the Lord gives us to see His hand at work and watch Him transform the lives of the one's He loves. ~Ephesians 2:10-For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
He is worthy of worship in every small moment of our day from the joy our sweet dogs bring us, to the opportunity of helping out those in need, to the delight I find in decorating my home, to the ability to exercise and move our legs, to the passion my husband has for competing in triathlons, to the joy I see in my kindergartners faces, to the deep theological conversations Jacob has with youth searching for the answers to hard biblical questions, to the blessing of spending however much money I need at the grocery store to feed our small family of 2, and the blessings and moments of worship continue!
How richly He has blessed us and I so often forget to stand in awe of those moments because I just "get used to them" or take them for granted. Every moment that is created and given from our Creator is a moment to worship Him for who He is...Magnificent. Glorious. Beautiful. Indescribable.
Moments during the month of December to Worship our Creator:
Standing around the New Year's Eve bonfire sharing our Spiritual New Year's Resolutions
Looking at the fireworks together :)
Decorating our Christmas dogs...they love this annual tradition :)
Winning 2nd Place at our annual Family Christmas bake-off
My sweet grandmother and the matching hat & scarf she knitted
Christmas Pictures with the cousin
