Tag: Thankful

I am Thankful for my Future

~ Barbara ~ 1 Comment

I am thankful for my faith, my family, and my friends—and I am abundantly thankful for my future.

At this point in life, I’m acutely aware of two things—the speed of time and the frailty of life. This can distress me when I speak my age, look in a magnifying mirror, forget a name, or schedule another doctor’s appointment. I become reflective and longingly remember days of high energy, full schedules, and arthritis-free living. But mostly, I am thankful.

I look beyond the unknown length of my days and put weaknesses of body and mind in perspective. I don’t know when my years will end but I know when my life will begin!

I have a future with no expiration date. I will live it in a body made new. I will have no physical or mental limitations. Every longing of my soul will be met. Every wonder of nature will be explored. Every gift and talent will be exercised. Every new experience will be enjoyed.

I will see Jesus and the fulness of His love! I will worship God in all His glory and be amazed! I will laugh with my daughter, walk with my parents, converse with the saints!

So as the days pass, I will not regard time as the waning of life, but as the nearing of perfect life. I will silence whispers of disappointment and align my perspective with truth. I will count on God’s faithfulness and savor His favor. And my heart will swell because of the future that awaits me.

I am thankful for my Future.

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard…
the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”
1 Corinthians 2:9

I am Thankful for Family

~ Barbara ~ 2 Comments

My husband and I have been married for 56 years. We raised five children and are blessed to love 11 grandchildren. They are the ones I love the deepest and pray for the longest. Rich and I are each one of five children which gives us a wide spectrum of nieces and nephews, near and far, whom I also love and pray for. In this large family, not one is perfect. Not one is without problems. Some have distanced themselves. But they are “my people” and I am profoundly thankful for each one.

Additionally, my “family” extends beyond those numbered above. I have friends who have walked beside me in my happiest experiences and through my greatest sorrows. They have balanced me and cheered me on. They have overlooked my flaws and embraced me in my inadequacies. They know me at my worst but believe the best for me. They are “my people” and I am profoundly thankful for each one.

Then there is my church, which proclaims, “This is home. We are family.” And so they are. We are united in faith, merged in worship, and joined in love. It’s a large church so I only know a small fraction of the people, but I can walk up to any one of them on a Sunday morning for a hug or a prayer. It is a safe place where together we learn and grow, give and receive, fall and get up. They are “my people” and I am profoundly thankful for each one.

In the broadest sense, I have “family” all around me, walking my neighborhood and circling the globe. Whether they acknowledge it or not, we are our brothers’ keepers and all trace back to Adam. Therefore I will pray for them, care for them, and support them as I am able. I will resist pigeonholing and refuse name calling because each one was made in the image of God—they too are “my people.”

You may not have a large (or loving) family but we are not meant to do life alone. I encourage you to stretch. Reach out and touch someone. Be a blessing. And be thankful for whomever God has given you.

I am Thankful for Faith

~ Barbara ~ Leave a comment

I know my past—I was designed and created by a God who loves and values me.

I know my future—I will live forever in an untarnished, unblemished world.

I know my present—I am secure and safe in a world where darkness aggressively pursues new territory.  

My faith allows me to live in peace and security.

  • My confidence is in the One who sits on Heaven’s throne, not in the one who sits in the White House.

Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you. Jeremiah 32:17

  • The promises of my Provider assure me, the DOW and economic predictions do not.

Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Luke 12:24

  • My Creator is also my Healer, not limited to modern medicine or its advances.

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Psalm 73:26

  • My dreams, relationships, and satisfaction rely on the One who directs my steps and opens doors that cannot be shut, not on the favor of those in power.

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. Psalm 32:8

My faith calms me, satisfies me, and centers me—but only when I feed it.