Thanksgiving V ~

28 October-3 November:  This week, I have been thankful for a blissful night of sleep, for the refreshment it provides; thankful that my morning tasks were already near completion; thankful as I read these words from 1 Peter 1:23-25 where they are written: "Your new life is not like your old life. Your old birth came from mortal sperm; your new birth comes from God’s living Word. Just think: a life conceived by God himself! That’s why the prophet said, 'The old life is a grass life, its beauty as short-lived as wildflowers; Grass dries up, flowers droop, God’s Word goes on and on forever.' This is the Word that conceived the new life in you." (MSG);  thankful to know our Father hears the prayers of those coming late to church-prescribed appointments (7-7-7) and of us who're struggling with careless behaviors - Praise His name! thankful for the Savior's promise in John 6:37, "Everyone whom the Father gives me will come to Me. I will never turn away anyone who comes to Me."; and thankful, always, for the promise in Jeremiah 31:3 where we read: "The Lord appeared to us in the past. He said, 'I have loved you with a love that lasts forever. I have kept on loving you with a kindness that never fails.'" (NIRV);  thankful to have knowledge of our near-kinsman and Redeemer - Jesus, God's own dear Son; thankful for His promise to return and take all His people - both living AND those who have been sleeping in "death" - to the place He has prepared for us; thankful for this assurance from Ephesians 2:8 where it is written: "You have been saved by God's love and kindness because you believed. It was not because of anything you did, but it was a gift from God." (WE); thankful for the strong bones in my frame - bones which have only once suffered a small fracture in spite of numerous trips and falls; thankful for the help provided by family who get me back on my feet when the occasional fall occurs; thankful when I remember this passage in Psalm 37:23-24 where it reads: "The Lord guides us in the way we should go and protects those who please Him. If they fall, they will not stay down, because the Lord will help them up." (GNT); thankful for all the Biblical assurances of our heavenly Father's steadfast love and compassion, His tender care for His children (see John 1:12 NKJV); thankful for the Bible Gateway site that puts many translations and paraphrases at my fingertips; thankful to join with the apostle, Paul, who shared this thought: " I pray that your hearts will be able to understand. I pray that you will know about the hope given by God’s call. I pray that you will see how great the things are that He has promised to those who belong to Him. I pray that you will know how great His power is for those who have put their trust in Him." (Ephesians 1:18-19; NLV); thankful to have found a new photo challenge (and the image for the day that agrees with my mental picture of that event); thankful for another day of life and the strength that is promised; thankful as I read this message from 1 Peter 2:8-10 where it is written: "... He is, to them, ‘a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence’. Yes, [the lost] stumble at the Word of God for in their hearts they are unwilling to obey it—which makes stumbling a foregone conclusion. But you are God’s “chosen generation”, His “royal priesthood”, His “holy nation”, His “peculiar people”—all the old titles of God’s people now belong to you. It is for you now to demonstrate the goodness of Him who has called you out of darkness into His amazing light. In the past you were not “a people” at all: now you are the people of God. In the past you had no experience of His mercy, but now it is intimately yours." (PHILLIPS);   thankful for another Sabbath celebration of the Creator's finished work (Genesis 2:2-3; Exodus 20:8-11); thankful for the Creator's position as Redeemer for all who will give their lives, their hearts to Him in return; and thankful for the counsel in Romans 13:1 where it is written: "Every person should place themselves under the authority of the government. There isn’t any authority unless it comes from God, and the authorities that are there have been put in place by God." (CEB).