endless gifts {421-430}

421. the wideness of God's mercy
422. the depth of His forgiveness [over and over and over again] [and over and over and over again]
423. the Word of God to continually guide and strengthen
424. good, old-fashioned music that draws me nearer to Christ
425. the growth of new Christians
426. the gift of service to God
427. my health
428. bright sun, white snow, and blue skies
429. Sunday morning drives [I wish I had time to photograph the things I see but alas....I am on a tight time schedule.]
430. a new week with new mercies and a clean slate [!!]

Happy Monday, friends...

::three in one::

Here goes three blog posts wrapped into one.

First of all.....Scripture memorization. How goes it? Just o....k....! I basically have the first two sections of eight verses memorized [what is each section called....I missed most of the Sunday school lessons on Psalm 119]. While I am not as far along in my mega memory month goal as I would like, I am memorizing and that is a good thing.

Secondly...I made my third pillow tonight.  I whipped it out like nothin' doin'.  haha!!  It feels so good to sew.  Now that I'm getting the hang of using my machine, I feel like simple pillow covers are too blah and boring.  I need to spice them up a bit.  Yay for progress!  I'm also looking into taking a second class over at my favorite sewing and fabric store.  Can. Not. Wait. 

Thirdly....my thankful list.


411. plenty of time this week to work
412. snow, snow, snow
413. laughter, homemade soup, and conversation around the dinner table with the family
414. a check in the mail for unused things sold on Ebay through a local store
415. green lights when I am in a hurry [never under-estimate them]
416. Oma is feeling better [one round of chemo down, five more to go]
417. my Momma [love her]
418. an email from a missionary friend [halfway across the world in Zambia]
419. a lower estimate and the price being approved to get the bumper fixed [I never blogged about my fender bender, did I??]
420. psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs

Happy Monday, friends...

::endless gifts {402-410}::

402. yummy food

403. pretty flowers

404. friends 

405. Scrabble

406. a big group of people staying to ring in the New Year [they stayed till midnight]

407. a great party that we're still talking about

408. lots of laughter

409. paper whites from a friend

410. another year to give back to the Lord

Happy Monday, friends...

endless gifts {401}

This week, I am thankful for people. I will not list them all by name because I know there are a lot of people who know me IRL [in real life] and go to my church at the same time. I don't want to embarrass anyone or offend anyone by leaving them out. But there are so many people that have made a difference in my life. They may not even know it. But they matter to me. God has used them to bless me, encourage me, and help me develop into a stronger Christian.

The Heavenly Father knows who they are because I thank Him for them.

So #401 in my endless gifts list is an all-encompassing one -- PEOPLE.

The greatest feats of love are performed by those who have had much practice in performing daily acts of kindness. -Anonymous-

endless gifts {396-400}

Here I am barely squeaking in my Multitude Monday post.

I am keeping it simple and sweet this week.

I am so thankful for all of the people the Lord has put in my path and allowed me the opportunity to work for these families.

396. the Cohen family [nanny to the children--love, love, love this family]
397. Rusty [cute, sweet, old lady with the most adorable teeny little house]
398. Dana [sweetness]
399. Judy [hilarious; owner of a floral shop in town]
400. Kathy [daughter to the above-mentioned lady; funny]

I am so very blessed.

endless gifts {386-395}

386. stellar parents
387. my grandma came through surgery successfully
388. my Mom's health [The older I get, the more I am thankful for my Mom's health. She is going in for a routine check up today. This December 7th will be 12 years since she was initially diagnosed with AML. She told me today that she never thought she would live this long. Wow. God is so good!]
389. forgiveness
390. encouragement from others
391. music that lifts my soul
392. Sunday school
393. the people I work with in my ministries
394. the Holy Spirit and His working in my life
395. the family I work for

Post-edit:

I must add...
396. Andrea
and
397. Sharon

A personal side-note. These two ladies are incredible. I grew up with them. I've had a few email exchanges or comment exchanges {blog to blog} with them recently. Their mother is someone who had a profound influence on my life. I was able to help out in her Sunday school class the year and a half before the Lord took her home. She also had it arranged my freshman year for "town girls" to come to nightly devotions at the college girls dorm while I was in college. I can still hear some of her "devos" and words of admonition and encouragement. I miss her so much. And the love of the Lord that shone through her life has been passed on to her daughters. They are a Biblical example of love and friendship!

endless gifts {376-385}

376. new mercies every morning [if you stop to think about that....Wow!]
377. forgiveness
378. long-suffering
379. godly people in my church
380. failure [if everything goes right in my life, will I ever improve? no...]
381. busyness
382. bus riders that are faithful to church
383. new Christians added to our church
384. friends who spur me on to strengthen my Christian walk
385. provision every week, every need



PS...Another giveaway is happening for a set of cards from my Etsy shop. Please go check it out! I would love if one of ya'll won!!  Contest closes this Friday, November 5th.

endless gifts {366-375}

366. my family {amazing}
367. hazelnut coffee from DD {good morning, Monday}
368. going to church on Sunday {I love church.}
369. an outing with friends
370. beautiful music
371. early detection
372. good doctors
373. small cancer
374. a goodly heritage
375. His Word {my Guide Book}

Happy Monday, folks!

endless gifts {356-365}

356. the people I work for
357. increased traffic to my shop
358. new ideas
359. new opportunities
360. encouragement from others
361. Jesus -- I Am the Door {John 10:9}
362. Saturday afternoon -- listening to old Southern Gospel music with my Granny
363. sunshine
364. potted mums
365. beautiful trees {I love the fall}

endless gifts {346-355}

I start this Monday tired.  But it's already promising to be a wonderful day.  The sunshine is streaming in through the window onto my hands as I type.  Heart.

My weekend was overwhelmingly wonderful.  Our church celebrated its 40th anniversary with the same pastor all 40 years.  Incredible.  That seems rarer and rarer {excuse the grammar} to come by.  One of the bummer things about being a helper in a Junior Church class is that I miss out on the morning services during our special fall Sundays.  I miss feeling the presence of God so real in that auditorium.  So much prayer goes into each week and God's presence is clearly evident.  I miss peeking during the invitation to see sinners walk the aisle.  I miss hearing our pastor say, "We need more counselors on my left.  We need more lady counselors on my right."  It's easy to want to be where all the "fun" is but I reminded myself as I stood in front of my darling little Preschoolers that my job is important, too.  Even tucked away upstairs in a little classroom that was freezing cold {thank you for air conditioning}.  None of the children in my class will accept Christ as their personal Saviour while in Preschool but we try oh-so-hard to lay a foundation for the future.

So with a brimming heart, I will give thanks today.




346. cottage prayer meetings
347. improved behavior in some of my little Preschoolers
348. impish smiles
349. answers to the questions are Jesus! {And He's just the same, as His lovely name...}
350. a calm class despite our teacher being pulled away {the presence of God is evidenced even in our Preschool class}
351. How Great Thou Art -- the congregation was able to sing along with the choir & band on the last verse -- amazing!
352. 40 years of our church's history
353. being here for 27 of those years
354. our pastor and his wife
355. souls saved and following the Lord in believer's baptism that same day

How was your weekend?

endless gifts {336-345}

I must count or I will wilt tonight...

336. sleep
337. a day off
338. dead-headed flowers
339. watering cans
340. my church
341. after church pizza and fellowship
342. summer nights
343. crickets
344. old friends
345. sleep

Giving thanks before I go sleep...


ps--get my point?! :)

endless gifts {322-335}

322. seeing the dirt {spiritually}
323. seeing the dirt {physically....hello, don't we all want clean houses?!}
324. really, truly funny stories
325. hot weather
326. music, music, music
327. saying YES to nannying and NO to cleaning {a first!!}
328. waking up smiling
329. hymns that run through my head at the most opportune time
330. spending all day with my brother
331. sweet Aunt Sue
332. wonderful cousins
333. incredible grandparents
334. another birthday for my Mom
335. this thought from the sermon last night: Jesus called Judas "friend." Judas. The one who betrayed him. Judas. Jesus, What a Friend for Sinners.......... I really needed that last night even though that was just a bypoint and not even what the sermon was about.

Giving thanks...

endless gifts {310-321}

310. a reminder of Heaven and all of the loved ones we will see again
311. music
312. "old" friends
313. Sunday morning
314. funny Jade and an empty pack of Mentos
315. TEACHING by the Holy Spirit {have you ever thought how often the Holy Spirit teaches us through His Word...how much more patient I need to be when teaching children}
316. laughter
317. hot, hot, hot weather
318. watering and pruning flowers and seeing a correlation between the physical world and my spiritual life
319. a fantastic sermon in the evening church service
320. singing
321. down-pouring sheets of summer rain


Thanks for reading...

endless gifts {296-309}

296. reminiscing
297. readily given forgiveness
298. a really great Italian beef sandwich when I'm really hungry {I mean really hungry}
299. once again, AWESOME, INCREDIBLE people that I work for--truly a BLESSING from the Lord
300. a new afternoon nanny job
301. people who believe in me enough to recommend me
302. straight rows of a newly planted garden
303. old friends
304. friends leaving for the mission field {they will be missed}
305. provision every.SINGLE.week--thank you, Lord!!
306. a really bad Sunday in Jr. Church--reminds me that it's not ME who needs to do the work but the Holy Spirit
307. {repeat...but....once again} incredibly convicting sermons in church
308. a put-together house {after months of remodeling, this is definitely a blessing}
309. five chapters a day

endless gifts {276-295}

276. awesome, awesome sermons in church
277. the ability to serve at our church through work party
278. generous, generous people that I work for {even though they're unsaved}
279. canvassing {giving out the Gospel} for our church
280. old friends
281. the encouragement of seeing sisters all serving the Lord in different places
282. yummy cake
283. laughs, food, and fellowship with the "singles"
284. knocking on the windows and screaming out the bus window in the morning, "Miss Becca!"
285. singing from the heart
286. chairs on the porch
287. a perfect, sunshining day
288. sweet tea, flavored with mint, cool with no ice
289. the living, breathing WORD of GOD
290. growing in grace {it takes time!}
291. "And let the peace of God rule in your hearts," Colossians 3:15
292. comradeship and understanding of my family
293. {a short, little} ROAD TRIP
294. the smell of rain
295. the conviction of the Holy Spirit {it's scary when there's no conviction}

endless gifts {260-275}

260. Christ went all the way to the cross for me
261. conviction
262. hymns
263. an email from a friend
264. my single friends
265. provision every.single.week
266. white buds on trees
267. beautiful blue skies
268. spring
269. the story of Esther in the Bible and the reminder to have courage
270. a good, wholesome, clean movie {surely, hard to find these days}
271. anticipation of Preaching Conference next week
272. open roads and time alone on Sunday mornings while driving
273. freshly plowed fields
274. breaking of the fallow ground of my heart
275. helping others

endless gifts {248-259}

248. my Ipod
     {I love listening to sermons and music while I clean.  Here's something funny that happened on Friday:  I didn't think anyone was in the house and while listening to a sermon, the preacher climaxed with "The darker the night, the brighter the light."  And so I said "Amen!"  Right then, I turned around and saw the granddaughter of the lady I was cleaning for leaving a bedroom.  Oh well, I got a good laugh!}
249. being taught
250. good thoughts from Dad during family devos
251. my cousin and his wife calling me for my birthday--totally made my day!!
252. flowers
253. my "single" friends
254. Christ AROSE!
255. being convicted by the Holy Spirit
256. coloring pictures for me from my bus kids
257. birthdays
258.the Living Word of God
259. encouraging people

I just can't wait!

I can't wait until "Multitude Monday."

Things that made me happy today:

*tonight's Master's Club lesson...given by one of my workers--it was so wonderful and challenging!
*sitting around talking with my family after church
*hearing about my Dad's work--so interesting!
*online Christian radio from a Baptist church {I've got it on right now!}
*playing. my. cello. {mmmmmm................good!}
*scrapbook paper
*laughing, laughing, laughing
*chocolate milk
*a new Internet browser {am I the last sensible person in the US of A to get Firefox?}
*my HOPE is in the LORD, not in our socialist government!

endless gifts {226-247}

226. abundant work
227. being blessed to put my Scripture memory cards into others' hands
228. warm weather
229. snowdrops
230. spotting the first robin of the season
231. yummy Easter candy
232. funny things pre-schoolers say in Jr. church
233. working in Jr. church
234. laughter of friends in the night air
235. my family {Dad}
236. my family {Mom}
237. my family {Geoff}
238. music!!!!!!
239. playing in the church orchestra
240. the ready forgiveness of my cello teacher for missing two weeks in a row of lessons {boo...I hate missing them so much.}
241. playing the cello instead of the flute and enjoying it!
242. lessons that I teach in Master's Club that convict me
243. Sunday school
244. marvelous grace
245. the Holy Spirit's conviction on the same things even though I fail over and over
246. an email and a letter from college friends
247. a yummy Sunday afternoon nap

endless gifts {211-225}

211. the promise of spring
212. LAUGHING a lot with my brother
213. yummy food
214. music that encourages
215. music that challenges
216. being taught by the Holy Spirit
217. grace
218. being an encouragement to others
219. cute things kids say
220. cute flowers on clothes
221. learning about prayer
222. the promise of answered prayer
223. green lights when I'm in a hurry
224. a good Sunday morning
225. provision

**Sorry I haven't been keeping up on my gratitude journal. This is my 20th Multitude Monday post. Yay!**