I am couple weeks behind and I hope that you can forgive me! I decided to go ahead and post both for chapters 8 & 9 and in 2 weeks I will post for chapters 10 & 11 since December 1 will be our last (boo-hoo) week for this study together.
It is my sincere prayer that you have enjoyed each of these weeks as we dove headlong into this idea of gratitude. I pray that we will each find our own way of living out Eucharisteo every single day of our lives!
Chapter 8, How Will He Not Also, is a very honest chapter about Ann's life. What she would describe as "messy".
Stories. We all have them. Some of them as messy. Most of them contain a balance of joy and pain... but each one containing a single common ingredient... GRACE!
The big question... Can we learn how to be grateful through situations we don't understand? Can we trust when we don't know what's coming ahead?
If you are ANYTHING like me - you might be a bit familiar with a need to control everything. But God asks that we TRUST. And that means leaning back and letting God take over. And taking over EVERY aspect of our daily lives.
"Stress brings no joy." Ann says on page 147. We can say we are joyful... but when we live in stress... we cannot possibly be living in joy. Joy comes from trust. "Stress isn't only a joy stealer. The way we respond to it can be sin." (page 146) Ouch! What are we saying when we are stressed? That we can't TRUST in our wonderful Creator?
How do we slow ourselves? Because remember it... LIFE is NOT an EMERGENCY!
My favorite part of this entire chapter rests on page 156. She says this...
"Wasn't that too His way with Moses? 'When My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove My hand and you will see My back.' (Ex 33:22-23 NIV). Is that it? When it gets dark, it's only because God had tucked me in a cleft of the rock and covered me, protected with His hand? In the pitch, I feel like I'm falling, sense the bridge giving way, God long absent." She goes on... "God is in the tremors. Dark is the holiest ground, the glory passing by."
SUCH a beautiful analogy!!
When the way is dark... and all of us will encounter that darkness sometime or another... it is only then when God is covering us... protecting us from falling. He is our rock. He hides us to protect with His very hand. Oh praise God!!!
Thank you Jesus. Thank you Jesus!
We are called to live a life of YES! To THANK HIM in the midst of whatever He gives.
Thank you Jesus!
Below is the video from week eight. (Remember to scroll to the bottom of the blog to pause the music from my playlist in order to hear this video.)
One Thousand Gifts: Chapter Eight from Bloom (in)courage on Vimeo.
Chapter 9, Go Lower, is a beautiful chapter of perspective. Ann talks about the perspective of her sweet little girl taking pictures... and how much different things look when you're only 3 feet tall. The looking up at everything. Just the way God desires for His children to look UP to Him!
We learn through this amazing chapter that my perspective changes when I see everything as something I don't deserve. Only THEN does it truly become a gift!
"The joy" Ann says, "makes life large." (page 167)
Oh how I want that!
Ann talks about expectations that we have. She says on page 169, "Expectations kill relationships - especially with God." And what happens when we expect the blessings to come and they don't? How does faith play a role in that then? Or does it?
Because all gifts... ALL gifts Ann says... are "unmerited luxuries".
On page 170 she says it beautifully... "Is it only when our lives are emptied that we're surprised how truly full our lives were?"
So how do we live a life of gratitude... being thankful with ALL we have... NOW... so that we don't miss the beauty of how full our lives are and risk looking back with regret?
"He must increase, but I must decrease." John 3:30.
"The FEELING of joy begins in the ACTION of thanksgiving." (page 176).
And I love what she says on the top of page 178... "And what do I really deserve? Thankfully, God never gives what is deserved, but instead, God graciously, passionately offers gifts - our bodies, our time, our very lives. God does not give rights but imparts responsibilities - response-abilities - inviting us to respond to His love-gifts."
She ends with this on page 181... "I can't be receptive to God unless I receive what He gives."
Let's receive what He gives. With palms up... let's allow Him to pour out to us the blessings we don't deserve. And together - let's respond with THANKSGIVING!
Below is the video from week nine. (Remember to scroll to the bottom of the blog to pause the music from my playlist in order to hear this video.)
One Thousand Gifts: Chapter Nine from Bloom (in)courage on Vimeo.
Finding JOY in the JOurneY,
www.wendybender.blogspot.com
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