Every day is Thanksgiving day. It all seemed to begin following that life shattering day two years ago when the doctors at MD Anderson told me I had glioblastoma, grade 4 brain cancer. Added to that was the sobering prognosis that I had a very short amount of time to live. Everything changed! God became more real than ever before.
Each day I wake begins thanksgiving day … giving thanks for breath, sight, family, dear friends, God’s presence, and His grace.
(Echoes of friends’ prayers that express my heart)
–lauren
Thankfulness takes the sting out of adversity … During this season of Thanksgiving I am grateful for the many people God is using in my life and in the life of my family to draw us closer to Him.
–di
Father God, how very, very grateful I am to still be here for another Thanksgiving! Thank You, thank You, thank You! I pray this week would be full of great memories and that You’d bless Bonita and me with many new memories, lots of family fun and laughter, and that You’d lift my pain and allow my energy level to be top notch to enjoy it all!
You are the Giver of all good gifts (James 1:17), and You are the greatest Gift of all too, Jesus! I praise You for who You are. I bless You and thank You for all You’ve done for us. Thanks too, that You designed us for fellowship, community and relationship. We are rich indeed because of friends and family! Be glorified in our gatherings this week. We invite You as well, Lord. Protect us from evil in every way. Cancer is evil. I pray You would say, “Be gone,” and it must leave my body and never return, in Jesus’ powerful name I pray. I love You and thank You for Your presence in my life! Amen.
–ragan
God, the sun came up this morning and light spilled out all over everything including me. Thank You. You gave me another day, and I wanted to say that for every single day, even the darkest and saddest and most painful days, you let me Be. Thank you.
And, God, my family! You gave me this family. This wife! This daughter! This son! And grandchildren who make me so proud! And, God, so much more. I am swimming in your gifts as abundant as Your morning light. I got to grow up in John Earl and Virginia’s house. I got Tim for a brother. God, it is as though they were all tailor made for me. Thank you! Thank you!
God, Your light comes to me like grace, and I accept it. And even on the days when I don’t seem to be aware of light or grace, You still overwhelm me with them. So, God, on this thanksgiving, I say as loudly as I can to all who can hear me: Thank you, God!
–bo
But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, My glory, and the One who lifts my head. I was crying to the Lord with my voice, And He answered me from His holy mountain. Selah. I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustains me. (Psalms 3:3-5 NASB)
Father God, we praise Your name today for who You are and how powerful Your word is in our lives. We bend the knee in reverence because You have blessed us more than we deserve. Humbly, we ask for Your presence at this time of Thanksgiving when we are reminded that there is nothing that completes our lives as Your Holy Spirit going before, walking us through, and keeping us stable at this time. How thankful we are that You know our name, and that we are important to you. What troubles us, troubles You.
Help us to keep You continually before us, because You are our right hand, and we will not be shaken knowing You are there at our side. Keep us in the shadow of Your wings, because there we will behold Your face and will find peace and hope. Be with us during this time of waiting for cancer results and, while waiting on You, we will again and again be mindful that You are in control.
Thankfully, we ask that You bless our friends and family. Keep them, without restraint, healthy, happy, and hopeful in You alone. For You alone are worthy. Amen
| This Thanksgiving I am rich.My family is dear to me. They love me with a determined grace, even when I’m not easy to love. They stick close.My Savior called me early to his side, and has not ceased to surround me at every juncture with his great, unfailing love. He has been so good to me – so good – for so very long!Friends I do not deserve sharpen me as iron sharpens iron. They help me remember who and whose I am, and their steady presence challenges me to love long, and well. In this I still have much to learn.I can see beauty everywhere I look, and even the hard kind of beauty has left good, true marks on me. I’ve learned to love my scars.I have work that gives me joy. A roof over my head. Comforting, creaky floors beneath my feet. A darling dog whose tail wags crazily when I come home, no matter the hour. The fellowship of the saints. The sweetness of the Word.Even with all of this, sometimes I am fearful, or doubtful or sad. Sometimes I imagine that I’ve missed the best parts of life, but usually I am looking at someone else’s life when I do. When I look at my own I cannot stray far from humble gratitude. Father, Son and Holy Spirit, for these goodnesses, and ten thousand more…Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Amen.© Leigh McLeroy 2008. Wednesday wordshttp://leighmcleroy.com/wednesday-words.html |
–me I do not take this opportunity to thank You lightly. Many of these seasons of giving expressions of thanks have come and gone all too quickly without genuinely considering the incredible things for which I am thankful. Your love for me, Thank You, dear Father!
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