Thanksgiving IV ~

8-14 January:  This week I've been thankful for a sound sleep and waking with working mental processes; I'm thankful to re-discover the journal containing notes and prompts for writing projects from another place and time; and I am thankful for these words from Jeremiah 3:15: " I will give you leaders who will be faithful to Me. They will lead you with knowledge and insight" (NET); for our Creator's gift of life - life in the here-and-now and a promise of forever life with Him for all who choose life as His friends; I'm thankful for the wise counsel in the written Word of God; and for these words from 2 Timothy 3:16,17: "Every scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for showing mistakes, for correcting, and for training character, so that the person who belongs to God can be equipped to do everything that is good" (CEB); I have been thankful for the wise words I found in an old fb post this morning - old, but absolutely true; I'm thankful for the hugs that come from family and friends; and thankful, too, for the cautionary message of Jeremiah 7:23,24: ". . . I told them, 'I will be your God, and you will be My people. Follow Me every step of the way into a life that is good.' But they didn’t trust Me. They didn’t obey My voice. They refused to listen to Me. Instead they followed the plans of their own stubborn hearts. Each step was a step backward, not forward" (VOICE); thankful for the promises in God's Word - promises of abundant life as we come close to Him, and then - a forever life in His glorious kingdom for all who choose His ways; I'm thankful for strength He provides each day; and I am thankful for this reminder from Psalm 118:5,6: "In tight circumstances, I cried out to the Lord.  The Lord answered me with wide-open spaces. The Lord is for me—I won’t be afraid. What can anyone do to me?" (CEB); for the safety provided by angel guardians as we go out and return on roads covered with ice and snow; thankful, too, for the service folks who keep things filled, connected in this winter-y weather: and thankful for these words from Galatians 3:26-28: "You are all God’s children through faith in Christ Jesus. All of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither slave nor free; nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (CEB); I am thankful to see that the path to the mailbox has been scooped free from snow; thankful, too, for the fair skies that are in the weather forecast; and I'm thankful for the admonition in these words from 2 Corinthians 5:19-20: ". . . God was reconciling the world to Himself through Christ, by not counting people’s sins against them. He has trusted us with this message of reconciliation.  So we are ambassadors who represent Christ. God is negotiating with you through us. We beg you as Christ’s representatives, 'Be reconciled to God!'” (CEB); So-o-o thankful for a new Sabbath day and for all the blessing it brings to my heart; I'm thankful for hopetv, 3ABN, and all the other media that provide programming over the airwaves; and I am thankful for this cautionary message from 1 John 4:20,21: "If anyone says, 'I love God', and hates a brother or sister, [that person] is a liar, because the person who doesn’t love a brother or sister who can be seen can’t love God, who can’t be seen. This commandment we have from Him: Those who claim to love God ought to love their brother and sister also" (CEB).