Confused?

I have a very confused flower in my garden. It is a beautiful Iris. It bloomed wonderfully for me in May, and has now decided to grace us with beautiful blooms at the end of.... October!

We have had a freakishly warm October, and it is certainly confusing some little plants :).

Since this picture was taken, the flower has had 2 beautiful blooms open up fully, which then were used to grace the inside of our home! Now, there are 2 more blooms ready to go !! 

So grateful for simple pleasures, like an Iris blooming unexpectedly. 

Happy Consequences -or- A Disposition of Gratitude

Gratitude: The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.
Disposition: A person's inherent qualities of mind and character. (thanks, google, for simple definitions.)

I am generally a grateful person. At times, i fail, as we all do. I grumble and complain that i don't have this and that. I look at what others have that i don't, and get grumpy. I can pout. i know, shocking! ;)

I notice that i can get less and less thankful for what i DO have, and more and more hungry for the things this world tells me i need. When that starts to happen, i also lose sight of the "good" in my life, as i am so focused on the negatives. I begin to major on the minors, if you know what i mean. Suddenly, the faucet in my bathroom looks ugly, because....didn't you see that really cool one in the magazine? Suddenly my closet seems to have nothing in it (when in all actuality, my closet is bursting with clothes), because....didn't you see all those really nice, new clothes at the store (and i ain't talkin' 'bout the thrift store).
NOTE: I am a very thrifty shopper and do enjoy thrift stores!! Sometimes though...

Do you see what happens so quickly? We get our eyes off of Christ, and onto the things of this world, and we get hooked. We get ensnared. We can grow a love in our hearts for this world that surpasses our love of Christ, which is idolatry by the way.

How do we combat this?

The most important way is by renewing our minds in the Word of God. We are to fix our eyes on Christ, and one great way of doing that is starting the day with a time of Scripture reading.  I have been camped out in the Epistles lately. Man! That will give you some serious perspective!
Philippians 4:11-13 says,

"Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need.  I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

Another way is to study in Scripture what we are to "put off" and "put on". We are to put off discontentment and covetousness, and put on contentment.  We are to put off enviousness and put on the quality of rejoicing with others.

I saw this card with a friend, and purchased it. it says
Happy Birthday on top. This card captures how i
want to live my life: FREE and full of joy in
Christ, with hands opened and eyes to Him.

A great way to develop contentedness and gratefulness is with a list. This past weekend, i had one of many great conversations with a dear friend. I had asked her what all the journals were that she kept (there were four of them!). One caught my attention: it was a journal for her to list the good things in her life, and the things she was grateful for. I was honest enough to say that i just hadn't done that since it seemed to be so "trendy" for a while. Yet, when she was sharing her heart behind why she does it, something clicked. I realized that there are so many good things in my life, and that writing them down would help me to remember. To remember God's goodness, provision, blessing, help, and strength. To see just how many good things there are on any given day. I have begun my own little book, and i am calling it: Good Things -or- A Disposition of Gratitude: A Journal. It has been a most excellent exercise. Today was my 2nd day writing in it, and it was already a beautiful thing to look back over yesterday's entries.
Here are just a few things in it:

• a walk in the crisp Autumn air as the world wakes up.
• friends around our table for food and fellowship.
• our space heater!
• flowers (roses, gaillardia, tall asters, daisies, ring flowers) in the house from my garden in mid-October.
• lego creations from scratch.
• music! music! music! 
• salvation.
• my Bible
• the book of Proverbs
• a long conversation and prayer with a child: difficult and beautiful at the same time.
• walks with my husband.
• laughter. 
• sunshine and a friend.
• a new kitchen timer.

Today, i took my kids to the Dollar Tree and had them each pick out a little notebook. I bought new pens. We took them home and then i explained what they were for. I had them each start their own Good Things, or gratefulness journal. One of my kids called theirs "Good Things or Happy Consequences". We keep them in a little basket in the living room so that they don't get lost, and so they can fill them in any time they want. They keep their new pens with the journals. I think it will be a treasure to them in months to come, as they remember all the "little" things, and the not-so-little things. 

Happy Consequences. Just makes my heart smile.

Some Days

There are some days when you have to sing this song to yourself often.

Simple Delights

In the midst of the hard of this world, there are simple delights...simple joys. Today, i need to share some of those simple joys. some of the simple delights.

~ Brian's hand to hold and arm around my shoulder when the going gets tough.
~ walking through the neighborhood at dusk with Brian.

Daisies in our garden

~ warm coffee early in the morning.
~ a room that faces the sunrise, to be alone with God in the early morning.
~ holding a book in my hand. especially my Bible.
~ butterflies flitting through our gardens.
~ roses and daisies.
~ Bluebirds and Goldfinches.
~ Cardinals and Barn Swallows.
~ Dragonflies and Hummingbirds.
~ our children's laughter filling the halls.
~ nerf wars on the staircase.
~ music. hymns. worship.
~ a small gathering on Wednesday night to sing incredible truths and hear God's Word preached.
~ friendship.
~ dishes in the sink, which means we have food on the table, which means we have a table and a home to have that table in.
~ dinners around that table. communion.
~ the beauty of the wind through the tall trees.

There are times when we just need to remember all of the seemingly simple gifts we have been given. Yet, if we really think about it, none of these gifts are simple! They move to the profound, when we look to the One who is the Creator and the Giver of each of these things. We are so undeserving, yet our gracious Lord showers us with grace and mercy every.single.day.

THAT, my friends, is truly amazing.

Bluebird

 

photo credit

To say that i like watching birds would be an understatement. I have the Birds of Minnesota book and faithfully check off each new type of bird i see. The book (and accompanying cd's of bird calls) are on top of a hutch in our kitchen for quick and easy access. Unfortunately the book was missing for a good year, but i found it this Spring in our front closet, right under my nose the whole time. It was a happy day when that book was found! The funny thing about me getting into watching birds, is that my husband has too. Last summer he was the one to spot the Scarlet Tanager that came by! I finally was privileged to see it, but he had the first couple sightings.

We have lived in our house for over 5 years now. I start to think that maybe we won't see any new types of birds, but.... WE DO!

 Last summer was the S. Tanager, this summer it was the  Eastern Bluebird. Many people in our area see them; i happen to be the one who doesn't. In June, i spotted one on a fort wall at Fort Snelling. I was so thrilled! Then, a couple of days ago, Brian and i were sitting on the back deck. He says, "What kind is that?" At first i didn't know what he was talking about, but his eyes were on a branch close by, so i assumed it must be a bird. All off a sudden, a flash of blue wings took off and flew across the yard! An Eastern Bluebird!

My jaw dropped.

This is the branch where the bird landed.
It's a dead branch i put in a container with
zinnias and morning glories. 

I couldn't speak.
I was so stunned and elated!

I ran inside and grabbed the bird book to show him. It was just the coolest thing to see that bird, the bird i have wanted to see close up for so long, right there on the branch on our porch, not five feet from us!

Seeing that bird was a sweet gift from my Father. He knew that something so simple would fill me with great joy. Brian said that it was like i had won the lottery, my reaction to seeing the bird was so big :). Though the moment was short, the sight of that bird helped me. It brought joy to a world-weary heart. It reminded me of the amazing Creator God that i serve. It reminded me that moments of absolute beauty pop up when i am least expecting them.

And...

It filled my heart with a deep gratitude.
Gratitude for simple joys. For beautiful nights. For time on the deck with my husband. For Eastern Bluebirds that will sit and rest for a moment on a branch nearby. For the One who created all things, and who does all things well - our great God!

Guess who visited the branch last night? A Hummingbird! The little thing came and took a sip of nectar from a flower, and then perched right there on the branch while we were eating our dinner. You should have seen all 6 of us just stop and stare and wonder! So tiny, so beautiful. 

Gratitude Check

“So much has been given to me I have not time

   to ponder over that which has been denied.”

~ Helen Keller

 

 

I have been really thinking about this. Can't say amen, better say ouch, as one preacher states.