Thanksgiving VIII ~

7-13 March:  Through the past week, I have been thankful for the message of the Father's love for all His earth children that is revealed in His Word; thankful that our Creator was willing to leave the courts of heaven to show us how to live from infancy to adulthood, always doing what pleases the Father (John 8:29); thankful for these words from 2 Corinthians 5:20-21 where we read: ". . . We are ambassadors on behalf of Christ, since God is appealing through us. We are begging on behalf of Christ: 'Be reconciled to God!' He made the One not having known sin to be sin for us, in order that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (DLNT); thankful to see God's grace on those in my life - grace and mercy and love; thankful for the privilege of living in my eighty-second year, realizing that's an opportunity not everyone sees; thankful to consider these words from 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 where we read: "All praise goes to God, Father of our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. He is the Father of compassion, the God of all comfort. He consoles us as we endure the pain and hardship of life so that we may draw from His comfort and share it with others in their own struggles." (VOICE); thankful for a new day of life and the blessings my Father has in His mind for me (and for you!); thankful for sunlight coming through my window; thankful as I read this message from 2 Timothy 1:9 where it is written: "... He delivered us and saved us and called us with a holy calling [a calling that leads to a consecrated life—a life set apart—a life of purpose], not because of our works [or because of any personal merit—we could do nothing to earn this], but because of His own purpose and grace [His amazing, undeserved favor] which was granted to us in Christ Jesus before the world began [eternal ages ago." (AMP); thankful for mercy - that our heavenly Father ". . . has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities" (Psalm 103:10); for His grace - the complement to His mercy in not giving me what I rightly deserve - grace gives me all I do NOT deserve; thankful for the assurance in 2 Corinthians 5:21, ". . . He made Him who knew NO sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (KJV); thankful for the strength and stability I've been given to manage the activities of daily living; thankful for this assurance from Deuteronomy 7:8-9 where it is written: "... The Lord chose you because He loved you, and He kept His promise .... So know that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God. He will keep his agreement of love for a thousand lifetimes for people who love him and obey his commands." (NCV); thankful for an early waking to this day of preparation for the Sabbath - the sixth and seventh days were the only days with names in the Bible, the others simply were designated as the first day, second day ... fifth day (the day began and ended at sundown - see Genesis 1); thankful that the discomfort of joints with worn edges is resolving with the turmeric based salve given me on my visit to Eden Valley a few years back; thankful for this affirmation from 2 Peter 1:3-4 where it is written: "His divine power has given us everything we need to experience life and to reflect God’s true nature through the knowledge of the One who called us by His glory and virtue. Through these things, we have received God’s great and valuable promises, so we might escape the corruption of worldly desires and share in the divine nature." (VOICE); thankful to be celebrating another Sabbath, the day the Creator gave as a gift to all as a memorial of His acts over the six days in which He made our world and all that is in it (Genesis 2:2-3, Exodus 20:8-11); thankful for the privilege of studying the book of Isaiah, the gospel prophet, who wrote so much about the Savior long before He came to live and work among us; and thankful as I considered this message from Romans 8:27-28 where it is written: "... God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good." (MSG).