April 10, 2012: Open Heart, Closed Hands

3 gifts opened up:

• the blossoms on our neighbor's tree.  I don't know what kind it is, but it's covered in billowy cotton candy pink flowers and it is gorgeous. Although not in our yard, I get such enjoyment out of it through our dining room window.
• a coupon that came in the mail for a complimentary drink at a nearby coffee shop.  I'm not a coffee drinker, but I can stop in for a chai tea or a frozen something-or-other.  Nothing better than a freebie!
• a text from a friend asking me to intercede for a crisis situation in her family.  What a blessing to be counted as a friend who will pray.

March 23, 2012: The Gift of a Coffee Cup

3 gifts found in women today:
I ponder this dare as I leave from a morning spent with a longtime friend.  It was cool and pouring down rain outside, but as we sat in the coffee shop with cups to warm our hands, my heart was encouraged and strengthened by the time spent together.  I am blessed to have women in my life who are...

• vulnerable.  Who aren't afraid to let their guard down, to expose their emotions.
• joyous.  Who love to laugh and to share happy news.
• compassionate.  Who feel another's pain and dare to venture in.

February 27, 2012: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

3 ugly-beautiful gifts:

•  rules. My first instinct when I see rules like these pool rules is to rebel. How dare anyone tell me what to do?  These rules are ridiculous!  But, really upon further thought, they are only for the safety of everyone using the pool. They are for our good, not meant to ruin anyone's fun but to ensure the enjoyment of all.  Really it's the same with God's rules. Sometimes they feel restrictive, but in actuality they are for my good, even for my blessing, my joy. Blessed is the one...whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night.  That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,  which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers. Psalm 1:1-3
• feet.  Ugly, yet they are also beautiful in function.  They carry me everywhere I need to go and I certainly would never trade them.
• the cross.  What could be uglier than an instrument of torture and death, yet it is also the most beautiful symbol of mercy and life. 

February 20, 2012: Gifts at Every Meal

a gift at breakfast, lunch, dinner:

• Insight.  I read a devotional from Jesus Calling again at breakfast and one of the Scripture references was Colossians 3:15.  Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.  The first word, "let" really caught my attention. It said to me that it wasn't just an automatic thing, that it required some cooperation on my part. Jesus isn't just going to overtake me with his peace, he wants me to desire it and to allow it, for me to submit to his peace. I also looked up the root meaning of the word "let" in the original Greek.  It was defined as 1) to be an umpire 2) to decide, determine 3) to direct, control, rule.  To be an umpire!  Wow--I love that imagery.  I must submit to Christ's authority as the umpire of my heart, to concede his ability make the calls, to have the final decision (and he doesn't need instant replay).   
• Love.  My husband sent me a quick "I love you" text during the lunch hour.  The high point of my day.  The little things do mean a lot.
• Contentment.  A few quiet moments to sit at the dinner table with my husband.  It's a blessing to have someone I love to listen as I tell about my day and then to return the favor.  

February 16, 2012: Gifts Undeserved

3 gifts in shadows:

• opportunity.  This morning while brushing my teeth, I prayed that God would fill me with his grace and love so that it would spill out to others.  Fast forward to late afternoon, I've worked all day and have been waiting for almost an hour at the doctor's office.  It was very irritating, yet I managed to stay calm.  As I was leaving, I was wondering to myself what God's purpose was for me in the long wait. Then I remembered my petition that morning and was humbled to realize that I had indeed splashed a bit of his grace onto the office staff as I sweetly accepted the nurse's apology and commiserated with the receptionist about her workload. Blessed to be a blessing.
• prayer. In the mail today was a postcard from Thailand.  It was just one brief sentence that read, "I am praying for you today" and was signed by the president of a ministry that I support, WAR International.  WAR rescues, aids and protects women at risk around the world who are in danger from trafficking, sexual slavery, and abuse.  Becky McDonald, along a team of volunteers, is currently in Thailand risking much to rescue women and she is sending me a postcard to say she is praying for ME?!  I felt so undeserving.  I should be the one praying for HER!  And yet, isn't that the beauty of the body of Christ?  We pray for each other.  We need each other. We help each other. 
• love.  Sometimes it's hard for me to accept words of love from my husband, words whispered in the dark, spoken in the light.  It's difficult to conceive that he finds me beautiful.  It's the same with God.  I can mostly accept that he loves me, but to believe that he delights in me, that's a whole other matter. Yet his Word tells me that it's true, in more than one place. 2 Samuel 22:20, Psalm 147:11, Jeremiah 9:24, Zephaniah 3:17.  Amazing love.

January 27, 2012: Gifts from Special Women

3 gifts that might never have been:

• the new felt Valentine wreath that I made today, now hanging on the mirror in my front entryway might never have been if it weren't for Pinterest.  I spend too much time on it, but it's just so fun!  It amazes me how many incredibly talented women are willing to share their gifts with others.  I've gotten numerous wonderful ideas from them, including this one that I adapted from http://www.theidearoom.net.
• the strength that I draw from my Moms In Touch sisters-in-Christ.  If I send out an email asking for prayer, they are the first to respond and I always know that when they say they'll pray, they do.  These dear friends enrich and bless my life and that might never have been if the first two didn't keep inviting me back when my children were in elementary school.  
• dinner out with my husband.  It might never have been if it weren't for the beautiful leaders I serve with in my Bible study.  They blessed me with restaurant gift certificates last Christmas and I've been hoarding this last one. I love those women more than I can express!  

January 20, 2012: Looking Close Up to Find a Gift

3 gifts you saw only when you got close up:

• I had to be over on the other side of town (a half hour drive) at 2:30 today and planned to meet my daughter to do some shopping when she got off work at 6:00.  A huge waste of gas to drive all the way home, only to turn around and go back again, so I wanted to find something to kill some time in between.  I ended up at Target, where they had lots of good stuff 70% off.  Found some great deals, including a candle holder I love for only $3.71.  Far away, an inconvenience.  Close up, a gift.
• I was helping my daughter look for a dress with no success.  We were feeling rather down and almost give up when we drove past a store we hadn't tried. It was 8:45 so we thought it was too late, but then saw that they are open until 9:30 so we decided to take a look.  Found a very nice dress marked down to $10!  Far away, a disappointment.  Close up, a gift.
• At dinner after shopping the waitress was rather slow, even though there was hardly anyone else in the restaurant.  It was a blessing to have extra time with my daughter.  Far away, an annoyance.  Close up, a gift.

January 19, 2012: Grace at the Kitchen Table

a grace in the kitchen, a grace in the weather, a grace that might never have been:

• A grace in the kitchen: the table set for three tonight, instead of the usual two.  A gift of grace to have my daughter join us for dinner tonight.
• A grace in the weather: the sun coming out at 2:45 pm.  All day long I could see outside from my desk at work.  The wind was blowing, the snow drifting, it looked cold and nasty and I dreaded going out in it after a dangerous drive there this morning.  At almost exactly the time I left work, the sun popped out and the wind died down.  It was a lovely drive home, the sunshine a surprise grace.
• A grace that might never have been: I was thinking tonight about how different my life would have been if God hadn't seen fit to bless me with Christian parents.  If I hadn't sung the "The B-I-B-L-E" on the swings in the backyard and known that God loved me even as a little girl,  who would I be?  Would I know at all?  Would anyone have told me?   To grow up not remembering a time when I didn't love Jesus--that's grace beyond comprehension, that is grace that might never have been.