Gratitude... Day 6

I can hardly believe it is November 6th... the last few days the weather has been so gorgeous! I'm sure we will pay for it soon enough! :)

Took a walk at the Ludington State Park... I am not an expert on state parks, but this is such a nice, clean place to enjoy nature! Our Inn is only 2 miles from the entrance to the park... come stay with us & you too can enjoy this beautiful park. Even in the winter, we spend time out there! We have a room ready for you!

My gratitude today is for this day of rest... you can go, go, go, but then comes the time that we all need a little rest. This is going to be a week of an emotional roller-coaster at times, so I am thankful I was able to go & worship with my church family... put life in perspective... always keeping in mind that no matter what the week brings... I can trust God! He is God after all!

"Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" ~ Psalms 46:10

To God be the glory!

Gratitude... Day 5

My hubby & I got some yard work done... it was a beautiful sunny day here in Ludington... don't know how many more days like this we will get! Our hydrangeas were just gorgeous this year... we have multiple varieties. Really all of our plants did great! I luv to have beautiful landscaping... and we are getting there little by little... and by "we" I mean Luke! :)

Here is the last rose of Fall... beautiful long stem red rose with some white speckles in the center... what a beauty God created!

Today my gratitude is for the home God has given us. Three years ago, we were kind of homeless... our house was sold & we had no new place to move. I can hardly believe it has been 3 years! This truly is the home God built... He might have used West Michigan Builders, but He built it for His purpose. I cannot even express how thankFUL I am for the opportunity we have had to host people from all over the world... showing them the love of Christ through hospitality! If is ends tomorrow... I can honestly say... it was worth it & I would do it again!

"And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus." ~ Philippians 4:19

I am grateFUL for God's provision!

Gratitude... Day 4

Took a quick over-night trip to the Thumb. Luke had farmers to visit, I got my hair trimmed (thanks, Chele). The bonus is that we got to stay at my parents & spend a little time with them.

My gratitude today is for great godly parents. Growing up I use to think they were kind of mean at times... very strict! What I realize is that all of their "rules" kept me from so many pitfalls of life. I still got into enough trouble... lol!... but it could have been so much worse.

Anyway, I am grateFUL for the Christian guidance, love, & acceptance of two wonderful parents! And I am so thankFUL that they are still here & in fairly good health! Love you, Mom & Dad!

"Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it." ~ Proverbs 22:6

With a grateFUL HEART, Carin

Gratitude... Day 3

November is not the only time to be grateFUL, thankFUL, or to show gratitude... a daily time of gratitude is so important for your mental, emotional, & spiritual well-being!

Today I am showing gratitude for the friends & friendships God has placed in my life! Living the first 40 years of my life in the Thumb... only minutes away from my family... I really didn't have many friends because my life was all about family.

Eleven years ago, when we were called to move over 2 hours away from family... it was so hard for me! It took 1 1/2 years to find my place! It was opening my heart up to let real friendships grow. Then again when we moved to Ludington, almost 3 years ago, it was a chance to let the strong friendships grow stronger, even at a distance, & let more people into my life. It was a little easier the second time around! Ha!

Anyway, I say all this to honor those friendships that I am so grateFUL for! I love this "easy to read version" of Proverbs 27:17... "As one piece of iron sharpens another, so friends keep each other sharp." We goof-off, laugh a lot, share words of encouragement... just love on each other! Nothing better!

Here is a card I made awhile back, but it expresses how I feel about my friends!

God is so good!

Gratitude... Day 2

We are doing a message series at our church called, FEARLESS. Learning to live a life for Christ in a fearless way. It's a 6-week series, & each week we have a community group where a video leads us to go deeper into the message. I go to a women's Bible study on Tuesdays, plus my hubby & I are going to a couples one on Wednesday nights for these 6 weeks.

This week it is focusing on the fear of failure... so at yesterday's Bible study a question was raised about what do you see as your greatest success & what do you see as your greatest failure? I shared that I really couldn't think of a "great success." A couple of the ladies spoke up in disagreement of what I said. I know I have had success, but not what I consider "great success." It left me really thinking about that.

After group yesterday, my hubby & I were taking a walk, & I told him about the question posed, "What is your greatest success? And what is your greatest failure?" I told him what I shared about not feeling like I had a great success. This is what he said to me, "Could it be possible that your greatest failure & your greatest success could be a part of each other?"

Wow! I knew immediately what it was... one of my greatest failures was my first marriage, but without that failure, I would have never had my greatest success... my marriage to my wonderful husband, Luke!

This is what John Maxwell calls "failing forward."

So today I have great gratitude for the gift of a wonderful, God-honoring, loving husband. I cannot remember my life without him! He sticks with me through the good, the bad, the ugly, & menopausal ups & downs! He is my superhero! Thankful for him every day!

God is so good!

Gratitude... Day 1

I love FALL! It is a beautiful season of transition... gettin' cozy, snugglin', wearing boots & sweatshirts (not necessarily together) lol.

Fall is probably one of the harder seasons for me as well... there are many dark days, figuratively & physically. The days seem so short & then of course we have the end of Daylight Savings Time that starts this weekend! Rah! Rah! NOT!

I know not too much gratitude so far... I'm getting to it, just let me vent a little! The Inn has slowed down a lot... I miss the busyness of meeting new people & welcoming them into our home! We will be offering some "girls getaway weekends" soon... I will share about this as soon as I can.

"Perfume and incense make the heart glad, but the sweetness of a friend is a fragrant forest." ~ Proverbs 27:9

Now for my Day 1 of Gratitude... I have a very sensitive nose... my mom calls me "the super smeller!" Ha! Scents or odors can really have a big effect on my thinking. There are times I smell something that instantly takes me be back to a memory! It is great when that happens & it relates to a good memory! For instance, when I am in the lumber section at Home Depot or Lowes, it reminds me of my daddy, the best carpenter & daddy in the world! The smell of freshly cut wood... great childhood memories!

Or my favorite scent is probably cinnamon... it is comforting, soothing, & reminds me instantly of the holidays!

I have so much in my life that I am grateFUL for, but today I am in gratitude for the sweet aroma & the love of my Savior!

"Imitate God, since you are the children He loves. Live in love as Christ also loved us. He gave His life for us as an offering and sacrifice, a soothing aroma to God." ~ Ephesians 5:1-2 (GW)

There is nothing sweeter than the love God has shown the world through the sacrifice of His Son.

BE ThankFUL

What a shame! It has been almost 4 months since I posted on here! Busy... busy summer at the B&B! It was so good with guests from all over the world, including Dubai, Singapore, Italy, Holland, France, Germany, Hungary, Great Britain, Latvia, Belarus, Mexico & multiply US states too! What a thrill it is to meet all these people!

I played around a little in my craft area today & this is what I created... a great reminder to be thankFUL! This is a 4x4 canvas I had in my stash!

Getting ready to go to a women's retreat this weekend... the theme is Increase Your Bloom Ability. The speaker is Cheri Strange. I have never heard her speak, but I am looking forward to it!

"Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" ~ Psalms 46:10

I have led & spoke at our women's retreat the last 2 years... so this is going to be an interesting, but good time for me to just "BE"! Can't wait!