Thoughts on Advent

ADVENT begins this Sunday, December 3, 2017!

During ADVENT I will be posting my blog on Sundays!

I am reading Timothy Keller’s book Hidden Christmas during this time. Join me as we look for Christmas! -dho

Thanksgiving Day! - Gratitude

“For GOD is great and worth a 

thousand hallelujahs!”

Psalm 96:4 The Message

In His Presence - Gratitude

I'm still in Your presence, but You've taken my hand. You wisely lead me, and then You bless me. Psalm 73:23-24 (msg)

Holy Father,
Everlasting Light forgive my redundant thoughts. Unfailing Love rescue my reluctant heart. Extravagant Grace fill my repentant soul. Goodness surrounds my every moment, exceeding my vocabulary. You continue to weave an extraordinary tapestry with sacred threads, torn remnants and unspun fibers. All are being woven together by Your Light and Love and Grace. What a masterpiece You are creating - thread by thread, moment by moment, possibility by possibility. Gratitude shouts Hallelujah! A thousand Hallelujahs are not enough. On my knees, LORD, find me on my knees, for You are Great and worthy to be praised! Your presence delights my soul, encourages my spirit, mends my wounds, shows me truth, offers me peace. Lord, be my strength, my shield, my joy! I long to abide in Your presence. Amen. ~dho

For He is Good! - Gratitude

God is the LORD,

And He has given us light;

Bind the sacrifices with cords

to the horns of the altar.

You are my God, and I will praise You;

You are my God, I will exalt You.

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, 

for He is good!

For His mercy endures forever.

Psalm 118:27-29 NKJV

As we enter this season of gratitude, let us reflect upon the abundant blessings that fill the moments of life. The heart experiences immense gratitude from unexpected words that whisper love and inside surprises that shout joy and within unspoken thoughtfulness. In between the obvious and outside the margins, threads of possibility weave scenes of goodness and generosity and grace. While grand gestures and catastrophic calamities stand alone and unforgotten, these small and simple pleasures embrace the soul with wordless glimpses of heaven. As silence surrounds, we must bring these most sacred offerings to the His altar with abundant thanksgiving. Within these holy moments, God draws us deeper into His Presence. Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. ~dho

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You - Gratitude

Loving God,

    

The night sky is filled with luminaries that

light the darkness. Angels whisper evening

songs to my weary soul. I do not notice.

As sleep gently calls, I forget that I have

breathed the morning air, listened to laughter,

seen the evening sky appear. Another day! 

Something disturbs the rhythm of my sleep, 

summons my soul. In these sleepless moments,

the Holy Spirit is waiting and listens for my

response. I whisper, Thank You! Thank You! Thank You! 

 

Holy Father, when I fail to see the beauty of

Your day, remind me with a glorious morning

to take my breath away, a soul-laugh that only 

a listening heart can find, and a night sky 

crowded with stars like diamonds that demand

a lingering look. 

My heart bursts with unmeasured thankfulness!  

These are Your ordinary gifts! I simply miss them in my

hectic hours, my scheduled chaos, my saturated time.

Give my heart the desire to breathe,

listen, and see the ordinary with extraordinary 

intention. Grant my soul the desire to breathe,

listen, and see Your Extraordinary Gifts of

Love, Grace, and Joy! Let me seek Your

extravagant gifts in every day! 

Let me shout, Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!

Refresh my spirit! Refine my faith! 

Restore my love! Renew my strength!  

Rebuild my trust! Reclaim my soul! 

To God be the glory! Amen.  ~dho   

"God-chosen...Splendid Friends"

"Keep me safe, O God, I've run for dear life to You. I say to GOD, "Be my Lord!" Without You, nothing makes sense. And these God-chosen lives all around - what splendid friends they make!" Psalm 16:1-3 The Message

These last months, I have shared my thoughts and studies about friendship, with God and with others, and His friendship with us. When I happened upon this picture, I wondered how closely we cherish the friendships God gives us. My grandmother made me this "dancing doll". If you look carefully, you can see the elastic straps that attached the dancing doll to my feet. We moved together, no matter how or where, when or why I moved, connected and certain. I love the way The Message  describes the people that God gives to us on earth. I want to share something from Macrina Weiderkehr's book A Tree Full of Angels.

It is difficult to fathom the potential of each person you meet. This depth and potential are like treasures hidden in a field... When your depth meets the depth of another, what a sacrament that can be... The heart cannot live without intimacy. We all need special people in our lives to whom we can show our souls... How do you feed your friendships?

In our relationships, with others and with God, opportunities wait for knowing and being known. Although God knows us completely, He desires us to come to Him. With prayer and mediatation and through reading the Living Word of the Holy Bible, our relationship grows ever deeper with the Lord. The same goes for friendships. Spending time together, sharing thoughts, being there for each other, and praying for one another, the friendships God chooses for us begin to evolve - even when we don't expect friendship. The words "God-chosen" and "splendid" perfectly describe divine friendships in my life, even when I was not looking for such. 

Making God Lord, the One we choose first, gives us a joy that exceeds the boundaries of the heart. The Amplified Bible says Psalm 16:11 this way: In Your presence is fullness of joy. During this series, I pray you have examined your relationship with God and each other. I hope you will spend some time reading David's psalm, listening for God's promises, praising God for being our refuge, our inheritance, our secuirity. "You will make known to me the path of life." I'll conclude with a variation on Macrina's question - How do you feed your God-chosen, splendid friendships?  -dho