At the end of this old year, I'm thinking back over all that has happened. There have been countless joys--thank You, Lord! Thank You for trips with friends and family, for joyous celebrations at holidays, for engagements and weddings. And thank You for the daily blessings of delicious meals, walks with dogs, brilliant fall foliage, exercise classes with friends, Bible study with wonderful women, going to church, waking up and feeling good, scarlet cardinals in the snow, laughter, hot tea, good books, roaring fires, chocolate cake, scalding baths, simply being with my people. Oh my, so grateful. Thank You most of all for sending Jesus to save us, Your Spirit to stay with us, and Your abiding, never-ending, never-failing love, forgiveness, faithfulness, power, and presence in our lives. Forgive us, Father, whenever we take any of it for granted.
But this past year has also held many heartbreaks, especially losing dearly beloved friends and family members. No, not really lost for we know exactly where they are, praise God, but lost to us for the rest of our short stay on this planet. How I miss them. What I would give to hear Jo Anna's hearty laugh, hilarious stories, stunningly wise counsel...and grow larger from her deep love of life and people. Or to hug sweet Katherine, tell her about the children, laugh over old family stories, and learn from how well she loves. Or Ray and his great wisdom, his love of the Lord, his way of living and looking so much like Jesus. And so many others.
All those we have lost leave holes that cannot be filled...but like those witnesses in Hebrews 12, we sense them cheering us on from above to press on. To love deeply. To forgive unreservedly. To live fully to the glory of God. To savor His gifts and to share them with others. To recognize in each day a precious, never-to-be-repeated twenty-four hours from Him that we must spend fully loving Him and others and deeply savoring this priceless gift of life He has given us.
Yes, we're all beginning to think about the new year approaching...with all those goals we long for, habits we want to change, dreams we hope to fulfill. But right now, let's just savor this past year. Grieve deeply for the hard losses. Ask forgiveness for the ways we failed God and others. But also rejoice over the relentless, daily goodness of God in our lives. For His holiness. For His presence. For His love and forgiveness. For His Word. And for His gifts. Countless gifts day in and day out. How can we not be grateful?
I've always loved these words from Shauna Niequist: "I think life, just life, just breathing in and out, is a great gift. God gives us something amazing when He gives us life, and I want to live with gratitude. I want to live in a way that shows how much I appreciate the gift. If life were a sweater, I would wear it everyday. I wouldn't save it or keep it for a special occasion. I would find every opportunity to wear that sweater, and I'd wear it proudly, shamelessly, for days on end."
Thank You, Lord, for 2018 with all it's sorrows and joys, losses and gifts. And thank You for carrying us through them all with Your powerful, loving, forgiving, righteous, redeeming, faithful presence. Help us to live this day, and as many days as You choose to give us, with abounding gratitude for You and for Your gifts. Help us, every single day, to love You and love others with every fiber of our being. Might we live this day and every day, in the words of Paul in Ephesians, "to the praise of Your glory."
To God be the glory.
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