Twice the fun!

I didn't post yesterday so today I'm going to double up!

Day 16

I'm thankful for the seasons of life.

We go through all kinds of seasons throught our lives. Each one comes with its challenges and joys. There is the season of childhood where exploration seems to have no limit until you are told you can't do something because you are too young or too little. It's a time of reliance on adults because you can't do everything.
There is the time of "teenagerness" where (if you are anything like me) your goal is just to get through school and hopefully make it to the other side. Not to say that you don't do other things it's just that this takes up such a large part of your life at this point that sometimes it feels like all you do is school.
Then comes the season of singleness, which is the current season that I'm in. It's a season that has its own challenges but it also is a season of exploration. It's a season that is wide open with possibilities. It's a season where you can explore your intrests more freely than before. You can go down paths that God brings into your life more easily because you don't necessarily have school breathing down your neck (although if this is the path that you are called to then that can be a blessing too).
I think I'm thankful most for the season of singleness because it has helped to open my eyes even more to the world around me. The other seasons were good and helped to prepare me for this season but this season has been a good one to go through.
What is/was your favorite season to go through?

Day 17

I'm thankful for variety.

The world would be a boring place without variety. We have a variety of seasons, of foods, of people, of animals, of places, etc. etc. The world is a very interesting and very unboring place to live in. It is a very good thing that we have variety in this world.
It's fun meeting different people and hanging out with very different personalities and getting to know those individuals.
We all come from different backgrounds and so it is cool seeing how people from very different backgrounds come together, get married and work out all of the kinks as they go along. They work out how they are going to raise their kids. They determine how they are going to spend their time and money. They figure out what kinds of things are really important and what's not.
If we didn't have variety we wouldn't have to do all of these things and end up with families that looked the same and did all of the same things. Life would get pretty boring and predictable if this was the case and life wouldn't be as big of an adventure.
I'm thankful for variety. I'm most thankful for the variety of people and families that I have been privaledeged to meet.

Sight is a Blessing

Day 15

I'm thankful for eyes.

There is so much that we are able to see and enjoy with our eyes. Colors, movement, shapes, people, animals, plants, etc.
Eyes also are pretty to look at.

The Beauty of Promise

Day 14

I'm thankful for rainbows.

Rainbows are pretty. They are simple to draw. They are colorful. They come during and after rain storms.
I love rainbows for all of the above reasons as well as the fact that God made them to remind us that He is never going to flood the entire earth again. It reminds me of the constancy of God.
 I think that it is interesting that rainbows are shaped in an arch and that bows used in archery have an arch shape to them. A bow is bent towards whatever it's target is. Rainbows are bent towards heaven. In a way God may be saying that if I ever break this promise may I be destroyed as well. If this is the case God takes his promises very seriously. I can honestly say that I do not know anyone who takes promises as seriously as God does.

Hehe Legos :)

Rain

Day 13

I'm thankful for rain!

I love rain. It is one of those things that I would not mind living somewhere where it rained a lot. 

Rain makes the brown hills turn green and the wild flowers come popping up all over the place (at least in this part of California). 

 Rain is a beautiful thing. It's sound is often calming. When it's stormy the ferocity of the storm sparks the imagination. Lights are reflected off of surfaces that don't necessarily reflect light on a regular basis.

  When it's over the rain leaves evidence of its effects behind for us to see and admire. It's kind of magical in its own way. God's magic. 

Ce-le-brate Good Times, Come On!

Day 12

I'm thankful for celebrations!

Celebrations are fun.
We celebrate a lot at my house. We celebrate holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine's day, Fathers Day, Mothers Day, Independence Day etc. etc. We also have a LOT of Birthdays, and my mom loves to bake, so we almost always have something on our actual birthday to celebrate.
There is a lot to celebrate. I think it helps us to be more upbeat and positive because celebrations are things to look forward to.
 Sometimes it's a lot of work but as I was thinking about it today, it's not about the work that you put into it necessarily. It's about the relationships that are around you that make the celebrations worth celebrating. (It's also a convenient excuse to have people over.)
So go forth and celebrate!

Got a Roof?

Day 11

I'm thankful for having a roof over my head.

The first day we saw the house!  

It's a blessing to have a house to live in. God has blessed me and my family so much through providing us the house that we live in now. It didn't come without us having to go through some difficulty and inconvenience but, finally, it came.
I know what it's like to live in a house that isn't yours with the owners still living in it. It isn't easy and some days it's downright challenging. There are good sides to going something like through this too.
It helps to put things in the right perspective.
 I'm very thankful to those who did open up their homes and provided a place for us to stay. It helped me to see the hands and feet of Christ at work and know that me and my family were not abandoned.
I'm also thankful for the lessons I learned while going through the "homeless but not houseless" time period. It taught me so much to go through that. It helps me to be all the more thankful for having a house now that I can call home. (At least for this period of my life.) It helps me to see God as an abundantly loving Father who sees the bigger picture. I saw God as my Great Provider. This was really hammered in at this point in my life. It taught me how to embrace situations and keep moving forward even if it wasn't easy to do so.
I could on and on about what I learned during this time period in my life but I'm going to stop there. Suffice it to say that I am very thankful for this time that me and my family went through but I am also very grateful to have it over and to be living in a house of our own.

Speak Out!

Day 10

I'm thankful for the freedom of speech.

In America we can give our own opinons on things, gather for worship and are able to discuss things about our particular beliefs, and we can discuss these things in public. We can do all of these things without having to fear being brutally persecuted for our beliefs. In other countries this is an unfortunate reality (e.g. the countries with the ISIS terrorists, parts of China, parts of Indonesia, etc.) but not here. Here we are free to speak out and defend our beliefs.
I'm thankful to live in a country where this is still true.