Thanksgiving VIII ~

 11-17 July:  During the past week, I was thankful for life - for a regular heartbeat, lungs efficiently moving oxygen in and CO2 out, mental processes essentially intact - all as designed by the Creator;  thankful for the anticipation of Jesus' return, He's coming again just as He promised; thankful for the beautiful description of that event written by the apostle, Paul: ". . . The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; KJV); thankful for the decreasing frequency of the episodes of P.A.T. (paroxysmal atrial tachycardia - short periods of rapid heartbeats - never can identify a cause) that is now very rare; thankful for all the beauties of the world around me; thankful to read of the example of Jesus response to His enemy in the Wilderness of Temptation: "... Jesus replied, 'It is written and forever remains written, "[You] shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes out of the mouth of God."’” (Matthew 4:4;AMP) - good advice for me when the "munchies" hit. I was thankful to still be able to accomplish the activities of daily living without assistance; thankful to be a daughter of the King, to be certain of His love for me (and you - for ALL of us!); thankful to know the One of whom the apostle, Paul, wrote in Philippians 2:9-11 where this found: "So God raised Him up to the highest place and gave Him the name above all. So when His name is called, every knee will bow, in heaven, on earth, and below. And every tongue will confess “Jesus, the Anointed One, is Lord,” to the glory of God our Father!" (VOICE); thankful for a lo-o-o-ng period of restful sleep in the night hours - a pretty rare occurrence; thankful for the persistent work of the Spirit in areas of my life where I make frequent stumbles; thankful for this promise gave us as is recorded in John 15:10 where we read: "Follow My example in obeying the Father’s commandments and receiving His love. If you obey My commandments, you will stay in My love." (VOICE); thankful for another day of life and for the strength promised for its duties; thankful for the memories of dear friends from Las Vegas days who stay connected with me on fb; thankful, too, as I remember these words from James1:20-22 where it is written: "[Our] anger does not promote the righteousness God [wishes and requires]. So get rid of all uncleanness and the rampant outgrowth of wickedness, and in a humble (gentle, modest) spirit receive and welcome the Word which implanted and rooted [in your hearts] contains the power to save your souls. But be doers of the Word [obey the message], and not merely listeners to it, betraying yourselves [into deception by reasoning contrary to the Truth]."(AMPC); thankful for friends and family who give me so many reasons to give thanks, to offer praise to our Father each day; thankful for the grand Horse-chestnut outside my window, shading my room from the direct sunlight; thankful for this message from Colossians 2:6-7 where it is written: "Now that you have welcomed the Anointed One, Jesus the Lord, into your lives, continue to journey with Him and allow Him to shape your lives. Let your roots grow down deeply in Him, and let Him build you up on a firm foundation. Be strong in the faith, just as you were taught, and always spill over with thankfulness." (VOICE);  thankful as I look forward in anticipation to this morning's Communion service at our church - a double "celebration" of the Sabbath the Creator chose "in the beginning" and of His body and blood, given for my salvation; thankful to live in a spot not threatened with wildfires, may God protect and save those who live under such threat; and I was thankful as I considered this passage from Romans 1:16-17 where it is written: "... I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in His sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, 'It is through faith that a righteous person has life.'” (NLT).