Good morning…
One week ago today as a class we celebrated National Gratitude Day. Quietly thinking of all the things for which we are grateful, we lit candles and dripped multi-colored wax onto a centerpiece of broken shells adorning the coffee table in our living room. As wax dripped down, voices of women raised up.
“I am grateful my daughter’s hurt finger is not broken.”
“I am thankful for a community of neighbors helping my elderly mother in Wilmington, N.C. Bringing her a cup of coffee the morning after Hurricane Florence. Helping to remove her uprooted tree. Continually coming to her aid in big and small ways. Allowing her to feel less frightened and alone.”
“I am grateful for friends offering to share rides, driving together is so much more fun.”
“I am thankful to God for two very different mothers, my mother and my mother-in-law. One was easy for me and one was much harder. I am grateful that both moms are now safely settled in heaven. I appreciate the influence of these strong women, who have helped shape me into the person I am today.”
“I am grateful for creativity. Dripping these candles makes me remember “Italian night” in our home as a kid. On special evenings, our mom would allow us to drip crayon wax over empty wine bottles. Then we would put candles in them, place them on the table, and pretend we were eating in a fancy Italian restaurant.”
“I am thankful for a tearful lunch with a friend this week who is dealing with cancer, a suicidal son, and overwhelming amounts of stress. My friend’s willingness to pour our her heart broadened my perspective and made me grateful for my crazy carpool schedule and our kids with normal problems.”
“I am thankful for new medical technology keeping my husband alive. Forty years ago, he would have died from heart failure.”
“I am in awe of God’s beautiful tapestry of support being woven around me during this very challenging time.”
“I am thankful for family helping me through the grief of losing my dad. We are making it through this pain together.”
“I am thankful for ordinary things, for health and friends, kids and grandkids, a new day everyday and blessings beyond measure.”
One woman concluded, “Every Friday morning when I come to your home, I choose to drink tea from your “Cup of Gratitude” mug because, even in this hard, unpredictable chapter in my life, the word I feel most is GRATITUDE.”
Together we bring Christ’s living presence to the hurting world around us. Help each other in troubles and problems. This is the kind of law Christ asks us to obey (Galatians 6:2, NLV).
…Sue…
