Thanksgiving VI ~

23-29 June: This last week, I was thankful for blessings "new every morning", blessings like the automaticity of heartbeats and breathing, of the delicious summer fruits available to me, of a roof over my head and garments to cover me - and so much more: thankful to have the D.S.I.L.'s parents here in our house for a while, what a joy! I was thankful to read this promise from Isaiah 40:28-31 where it is written: "Don’t you know? Haven’t you heard? The Eternal, the Everlasting God, the Creator of the whole world, never gets tired or weary. His wisdom is beyond understanding. God strengthens the weary and gives vitality to those worn down by age and care. Young people will get tired; strapping young men will stumble and fall. But those who trust in the Eternal One will regain their strength. They will soar on wings as eagles. They will run—never winded, never weary. They will walk—never tired, never faint." (VOICE); thankful for fresh produce that is readily available to me - everything from cabbage to green beans to enjoy; thankful for those that grow it, harvest it, and bring it in on the big trucks from farms to customers; thankful as I remember this message Jeremiah 5:24 where we read: "...'Let us now reverently fear and worship the Lord our God, Who gives rain, both the autumn and the spring rain in its season, Who reserves and keeps for us the appointed weeks of the harvest.'" (AMPC); thankful to see garden boxes "growing" along the edge of the front lawn (I can get there with a hose if necessary, much easier than on the south forty where they were in earlier times!); thankful for smiles from friends and from strangers I meet as I'm out with my walker; thankful for the message in Jeremiah 23:23-24 where it is written: :''Am I a God at hand,' says the Lord, 'and not a God afar off? Can anyone hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him?' says the Lord. 'Do not I fill heaven and earth?' says the Lord.".(AMPC); thankful to see the sun out in all its glory, "... rejoicing as a strong man to run a race." (Psalm 19:5); thankful that the plants moved to their new beds are thriving; thankful for this counsel from Leviticus 19:17-18 where it is written: :... If your neighbor does something wrong, tell him about it, or you will be partly to blame. Forget about the wrong things people do to you, and do not try to get even. Love your neighbor as you love yourself. I am the Lord." (NCV). For the meaning of "neighbor" in the mind of Jesus see Luke 10:25-37.  I was thankful for another beautiful morning - sunshine washing the hills around me with promises that summer is here; for the repeated assurances that our prayers are heard (31 Kings 9:3; Proverbs 15:29; Acts 10:31; and ! John 5:14 - among many); for these words from Jeremiah 24:6-7: "... I will watch over them. I will look out for their good. ... I will give them a new, intense desire to know Me because I am the Eternal One. They will be My people, and I will be their God because they will return to Me completely." (VOICE); thankful to have the traveler home again safely; I'm thankful for a beautiful morning heralding a day of preparation for the Sabbath as that holy day arrives with the sun sinking in the western sky; thankful for the enlarged view the VOICE Bible adds to the message below from 2 Peter 3:9 - Scoffers use the delay in His second coming to question if He is going to return at all. Peter responds by saying that God’s perspective on time is not like ours. What seems long from a finite, human perspective is incredibly short from an eternal one. Peter also describes how God is not slow, but patient. God wants to allow the time needed for as many sinners as possible to turn from their sinful ways. Unlike some depictions of God as vindictive and enjoying inflicting punishment on people, the God we see here desires that all be saved and not destroyed. If we had true spiritual insight, we would not be amazed by the severity of eternal judgment but by the intensity of God’s mercy. The passage reads: "Now the Lord is not slow about enacting His promise—slow is how some people want to characterize it—no, He is not slow but patient and merciful to you, not wanting anyone to be destroyed, but wanting everyone to turn away from following his own path and to turn toward God’s."  I was thankful for Sabbath, the day the Creator gave to the human race as a holiday from labor so we could spend time with Him (Genesis 2:2-3); thankful for a weather forecast that's gone from showery to sunny for this afternoon's gathering for fellowship and food at the home of a member of the congregation; and I was thankful to join this affirmation from Psalm 138:8 where it is written: "The Eternal will finish what He started in me. Your faithful love, O Eternal One, lasts forever; do not give up on what Your hands have made."