Monday Vitamins: Give Thanks

Thanks – defined as “an expression of gratitude.”  We are 3 days away from Thanksgiving Day in the USA. And even with the uncertainty in our nation and news of turmoil and acts of violence, there is still much for which to be thankful. But to whom do we give thanks? We are to express gratitude to people in our lives but let our thanks giving begin with God.

 “Give thanks to the Lord, ” the psalmist entreats us, “for He is good; for His lovingkindness (graciousness, mercy, compassion) endures forever” (Psalm 136:1, Amplified Bible).

Let us not be stingy in giving thanks to the One Who lavishes His goodness on us. Let us thank Him wholeheartedly. Let our thanks giving be constant. Let us pour out our praise. Let us shower Him with our gratitude today.  

 

Monday Vitamins: Prayer

 

My soul is troubled and burdened today as a result of the tragedies that have plagued our world in recent weeks; the most recent being this past weekend. So I accept and hold fast to my Father’s invitation and promise in Psalm 50:15. And I remind myself, prayer is not (to be) an act of desperation or a last resort, what I turn to when I don’t know what to do. May it be my default response and my intentional first choice. May it never become a duty or a badge I wear. I must not make it a casual pursuit or something I saunter in to, for true prayer is a life changing interaction with the One Who has all power and can do the impossible. So my desire is to pray with purpose, urgency, and faith, believing that He is and He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Monday Vitamins: A different kind

This week’s Monday Vitamins post is different. I am thinking of and honoring my dear Mother, whose birthday was yesterday.

“Mom”

One word

One life

Holding meanings and memories

too numerous to count

Eliciting gratitude

which cannot be fully articulated

Nurturing a love that extends beyond the grave

 

“Birthdays”

Happy birthday, Mom.

I wonder

Are birthdays celebrated in heaven?

Although time does not exist there?

Or is it one continuous celebration of

The Father

The Lamb

The Spirit

A celebration which contains all the good we celebrate on earth

including the birthdays of loved ones

because God is the Source of all that is good?

 

 

Monday Vitamins: What do you think?

Monday Vitamins: Thanks giving

He is good, His compassion and lovingkindness endure forever, and He has redeemed us. Fellow redeemed ones, will you join me now in giving Him thanks for His character and His incomprehensible act of redeeming us at such an unfathomable cost? Thanks.

Monday Vitamins: Trouble’s gift

“Moreover [let us also be full of joy now!] let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance.

And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity). And character [of this sort] produces [the habit of] joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation.

Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us.” (Romans 5:3-5, Amplified)

Monday Vitamins: Resurrection Power

“We have a reason to celebrate life every single day because the God we serve is alive. His resurrection power didn’t end on the cross 2000 years ago; His power is still at work today. Not only did He resurrect Jesus from the dead, but He wants to extend His resurrection power into every single area of your life, too.” – Joel & Victoria Osteen

The quote above is from a post on the website Inspiring Scriptures.com. It is an encouraging post. I encourage you to click here to read it.

Monday Vitamins: Prayer

Monday Vitamins: Those who know, trust

“Those who know, trust”

I am with you always
The Eternal, Always-Existed One Has promised
Sometimes I stretch full out on His words
Like a home on its foundation
Pull them up like a blanket
To keep the chill of the unknown at bay

At other times I inspect the words
As if He has  a reputation for being untrustworthy
Testing them like Mr. Beaver in “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” tested the ice of the frozen lake before trusting his weight to it

But He is the unchanging one
And the distrust I sometimes feel is baseless, residual
An inheritance
As Ann Voskamp notes
From the first ones created
Who heard a question and believed a lie

So I reach for the antidote
Bottled in Psalm 9:10
“Those who know Your name trust in You, for You, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek You.”

Your Name embodies Who You are
Personal, intimate, growing knowledge of You is the antidote to distrust
Seeking to know You intimately must be my primary pursuit
For those who know, trust

Monday Vitamins: Remember

Let us remember, with gratitude, His goodness.