Slice of Peace

I always seem to want to write around Thanksgiving. While some may think of it as a secular, all-inclusive type holiday, for me it's one of the most "religious". It's an entire day devoted to gratitude! No gifts, just grateful. Feasting on abundance, full, thankful. Family shhhing for grace. Bowing our heads. An over-cooked turkey, paired with raw thanks.

Paul says in Philippians,

"Don't worry about anything, 
instead pray about everything. 

Tell God what you need 
and thank Him for all he has done. 

Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."


Unending Thanksgiving begins by not worrying, but instead choosing to pray.

And prayer is two-part: 1) Tell God what you need (ask for help!)
                                  2) Thank Him for all He's already done (praise 'em!)

Only in doing the above will we know peace, God's Peace, which is so great it's beyond understanding. And that very Peace will protect our troubled hearts and worry-prone minds. Guarded for Good.


My practical way of following through with Paul's priceless advice has always been taking an old notebook and T-ing up all the pages. Then pouring it out as often as I can.

Tell God what you need / Thank Him for all He has done

Prayer is incomplete without thanksgiving and Thanksgiving is incomplete without prayer. Simple.

-Take life, omit worry. 

-Substitute with prayer. 

-Mix together some asking with thanking.

-Bake at 450* and enjoy.

Slice of Peace anyone?

Philippians 4:6-7

Respect Thanksgiving

Things have gotten a little busy around here with one in kindergarten and two in diapers. Even still, all sorts of little nuggets of thought are always floating around in my head and its always nice to be able to get them out with written words. And for both diapered wee ones to be asleep at same time right now is quite the mini-miracle... so here I go!

Something timely that's been on my mind this week is Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving - the prelude to Christmas.

In our house, Daddy is pretty much the Grinch about all things Christmas until after the turkey has been put away and the football games are over. Then, he concludes, the Christmas season is permitted to begin. He has actually hidden dvds, banned christmas music in his presence (I sneak it in the car), looked the other way in stores, and yelled, "Nonsense!" to the early outdoor lighters. (Yet, he can put back n/a egg nog by the half-gal with no hesitation at anytime?) His exaggerated point in all this though - respect Thanksgiving first.

I guess I get it. But more than appreciating Thanksgiving as just a calendar holiday which falls before Xmas, Thanksgiving needs to be recognized in our hearts as a prerequisite to Christmas.

Respect Thanksgiving by giving thanks to the Giver for the greatest Gift of all.

I've been teaching our 2 year-old a bit about the holiday. I made a silly jingle up that we sing-"Thankful means I'm glaaad, glad for what I have!"
Some of the things he's thankful for? Apple juice, movies, his baby sister... and to my pleasant surprise, he included Jesus in his list. My toddler can tell you "Jesus. Love. Dougie." And it warmed my heart to know that he is already glad for what he has in Jesus.

To use Thanksgiving to its full prelude potential, we can prepare our hearts for what's on its way. Being thankful that precious Jesus is coming, then waiting on that expectantly with huge hope. We know what's coming, the big One is just around the corner, and we can be so glad for its impending arrival! Not with a rushed, antsyness that always ends with an anti-climatic mess of wrapping paper on the floor. But with a overflowing thankfulness for the Gift we know is coming, the Gift that has already been given, and the Gift that is here to stay in our hearts 365 days a year.

Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

 ~2 Corinthians 9:15

This Thanksgiving, as a personal reflection with yourself and God or as a family activity, think about making or writing out a "thank-you" card.
To: God.  From: Me. Don't just feel thankful on Thanksgiving, tell Him so. Remember His indescribable gift and His wonderful deeds!


We thank you, O God!
    We give thanks because you are near.
    People everywhere tell of your wonderful deeds.  ~ Psalm 75:1

What are you thankful for...

I am thankful...

 for my baby brother,

 for all the animals,

for the wind on a hot day,

 that God made everyone super beautiful,

 for Aunt Missy coming to visit,

 that God doesn't change,

 for playing outside in the sun,

for being allowed to ask questions.

-Baileigh Umbehauer, 2012

Thanksgiving 2011 post - 24/7 thanksgiving

24/7 thanksgiving

This morning I was woken up with little fingers being jabbed into my eyeballs. Then I dropped a freshly poured mug of coffee across the kitchen floor. Some mornings it just doesn't come very naturally to declare "this is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it." It's more like, "Ugh, this again. I'll hang in and hope it goes by quickly."

But during this Thanksgiving, let's attempt to get back to the root of the word itself. Here's Merriam-Webster definitions of thanksgiving:

 

: the act of giving thanks

: a prayer expressing gratitude

: a public acknowledgment or celebration of divine goodness 

The word "thanksgiving" does not refer to a "feeling of thankfulness" or " the emotion of gratefulness". Thanksgiving is not merely realizing that you are thankful, but instead is acting upon it. An act, a prayer, a public acknowledgment or celebration that thanks the hand that blessed you. And true thanksgiving gives God all the credit. The Bible actually discusses the word "thanksgiving" some 30 times; it's all about expressing thanks and acknowledging that all you have been given if a gift of love from Love Himself. 

Gratitude is an attitude, but also a choice - a choice not based on emotion, feeling or even circumstance! God desires thanksgiving all the time, but not for His sake. As much as it pleases Him, He doesn't need our praises. This divine suggestion is for our own sake: "Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (1 Thessalonians 5:18) Like I said before, sometimes (OK, most of the time) it's easier to complain and focus on the negative than to live above that in a life of thanksgiving. But God knows a negative, ungrateful attitude puts us in a dangerous, miserable place and He does not want us to be there. That's why we must constantly make the choice of thanksgiving.

Growing up, my family said grace just once a year. We gave thanks to God on Thanksgiving Day and that was about the extent of our action-taking. But at least our annual thanksgiving was true thanksgiving. Even at a young age, I looked forward to that time every year (even if it was always filled with snickers and groans over the pages and pages of things my aunt just had to express thanks over - including but not limited to squirrels and birds). But I think I looked forward to that time because God designed us with hearts that thrive when we give thanks, not when we grumble over what we don't have.

Baileigh's TurkeyTato

Thankfully, God gave us beautiful examples in His Word of how to give Him true thanksgiving. The Psalms are filled with it. Writing your own Psalm of sorts is one active way to give thanks. Try writing one to God and reading it not only on Thanksgiving, but everyday, especially on the days when you don't feel like it. Read  Psalm 138 for some inspiration from David and spend time thanking the Creator of the Universe for everything He has done and given you - don't forget the squirrels!