Tag: praise

Thankful Thursday (episode 8)

Being thankful is difficult sometimes. I missed sharing my gratitude list last week, as I still have been feeling very low. But God has somehow continued to bring to mind things that I can be thankful for.

I may not “feel” grateful, but I am trying to offer praise to God anyhow…and I believe the feeling will come later. So here is my gratitude list from the past two weeks.

  • Roy received good news that his college application fee will be waived and that he has fewer credits to complete than he thought to get his Bachelor’s degree.
  • God providing for all of my needs.
  • I had a nice conversation with a friend who understands what I’m going through.
  • My Hubby did the dishes for me!
  • We played handbells well for Music Appreciation Day at church.
  • Roy and I were able to relax together in the afternoon.
  • The Hubby and I used a gift card to go to Cracker Barrel for dinner! *yum*
  • A good night’s rest.
  • That I have hands to wash dishes with.
  • I got my hair cut and it turned out great. 🙂
  • I accomplished some chores, even though I didn’t feel like it.
  • Roy and I celebrated five years of marriage. ❤
  • We went to a wine tasting and really enjoyed it.
  • We shared a nice time with our families.
  • Safety and fun traveling to Wissahickon Park.
  • My Hubby vacuumed the house for me.
  • The smell of honeysuckle in our backyard.

I hope that everyone is having a good week. And whatever it is you may be going through…know that God’s got you (I tell myself this often). Also, try to find small things to be grateful for (I’m working on this too). ❤

Photo Credit: Crystal Knauss

A Sacrifice of Praise

I’ve been feeling very depressed over the past week or so. I can’t seem to pinpoint exactly what is the cause – I just know that I want to sleep all of the time, that I don’t feel like doing any kind of activities (including writing), and that I’m having a difficult time being grateful.

But does the fact that I’m feeling the way that I do mean that I don’t need to be grateful? I don’t think so.

What I need to do is offer a sacrifice of praise to my Father God (Hebrews 13:15). In this time of difficulty – even more so than when things are going well – it’s important that I focus on the many things that I have to be thankful for. Am I struggling to see the good things? Yes. But I have to believe that God will help me to change my perspective.

What is it that you’re going through that is making it difficult to offer a sacrifice of praise? And will you choose to give praise in the midst of the struggle?

Photo Credit: Ben White

The Joy Dare – Three Gifts in the Kitchen

Today is the day I begin my Joy Dare! The praise prompt for today is: Three Gifts in the Kitchen.

First, I’d like to say that there are many gifts to be found in our kitchen. Most everything that my husband and I have in our home have been gifts from precious people. So picking only three things was difficult! But below are three gifts that stand out the most.

  1. A Dishwasher – When my husband and I first moved into our home, we did not have a dishwasher. Washing dishes is not one of my favorite things to do, so unfortunately dishes would pile up in the sink until I was able to gather the motivation to wash them. 🙂 About two years after we moved into our home, my husband’s parents were extremely gracious to not only purchase us a dishwasher, but to install it for us! This was such an incredible blessing. Now I have been able to just load, run, and empty the dishwasher instead of having to hand wash the dishes.
  2. A Cupboard – My husband’s parents were also gracious enough to provide us with a cupboard of theirs that we could use to store some of our food items. It fits perfectly into a corner in our kitchen, and it has been very useful for giving us a place to put items that we use regularly.
  3. A Counter-top and a Day of Organization – In order to install the dishwasher that my husband’s parents gave to us, my father-in-law was required to remove a section of our lower cabinets. For a while, the section of cabinet sat in a corner of our kitchen, not fully usable because it did not have a counter-top. My Mom decided to visit me one day and to help me locate and purchase a counter-top that would make the cabinet usable. She also devoted the rest of the day to helping me re-organize the items in our kitchen so that things could be located more easily. This was such a blessing!

I praise God for these Three Gifts in the Kitchen! ❤