Thanksgiving IV ~

9-15 April: This week I've been thankful to be back at home after the extended visit with the Colorado daughter and her husband - unexpected health problems made the time more complicated than I anticipated, but still enjoyed the visit and the assist in the overland transportation on our return; what a delight to catch-up with a nurse friend from Monument Valley days after services at the church in Twin Falls; and I was thankful for the message from Zechariah 1:3 which tells us of God's willingness to give us a fresh start - ". . . You must tell the people what the Lord All-Powerful says, 'Come back to me, says the Lord All-Powerful, and I will come back to you.' This is what the Lord All-Powerful said" (ERV); thankful for the fact that all my travelers have come to rest in their home places after miles of journeying; thankful for time to get my "stuff" re-organized; and thankful, indeed, for the truth of this message from Romans 5:6-8: "Christ died for us at a time when we were helpless and sinful. No one is really willing to die for an honest person, though someone might be willing to die for a truly good person. But God showed how much He loved us by having Christ die for us, even though we were sinful" (CEV); thankful for sunlight outside my window - day of sunshine and showers in the forecast; thankful for the "normal" reading on the sphygmomanometer at the clinic yesterday; and SO thankful for the Savior - "People insulted Christ, but He did not insult them in return. Christ suffered, but He did not threaten. He let God take care of Him. God is the One who judges rightly. Christ carried our sins in His body on the cross. He did this so that we would stop living for sin and start living for what is right. And we are healed because of His wounds. You were like sheep that went the wrong way. But now you have come back to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls" (1 Peter 2:23-25, ICB); I am thankful to know I am one of the King's daughters living on this third planet from our sun and to know that all who want to join me as His children are able - through belief in and obedience to the Savior - to do just that; I'm thankful for a new day and physical machinery that still works; and I am thankful for these words from Jesus: ". . . He said to them all, “If you want to come with Me, you must forget yourself, take up your cross every day, and follow Me. For if you want to save your own life, you will lose it, but if you lose your life for My sake, you will save it" (Luke 9:23,24; GNT); thankful to find hope in the One who gave His life to save us from "perishing" on this darkened planet; thankful for the evidence from His Word and in my life that He is faithful and keeps His promises; and thankful for these words from Jeremiah 29:11 where we read: "'I know the plans that I have for you', declares the Lord. 'They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope'" (GW); thankful for a new day and all the blessings of life, health, and strength that our Father has provided; thankful for the April showers that moisten the earth for the flowers coming and for all that the earth produces; and thankful for this affirmation from the Word - ". . . I want to remind you, my friends, of the Good News . . .which you received, and on which your faith stands firm. That is the gospel, the message . . . preached to you. You are saved by the gospel if you hold firmly to it" (1 Corinthians 15:1,2; GNT); thankful for the sunshine peeping from behind scattered clouds; thankful for the D.S. I'll see today; and thankful for this promise, found in Isaiah 58:13,14: "The Lord says, 'If you treat the Sabbath as sacred and do not pursue your own interests on that day; if you value My holy day and honor it by not traveling, working, or talking idly on that day, then you will find the joy that comes from serving Me. . . .'" (GNT).