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!

Just grateFUL..

The Inn is getting oh so busy! We dreamed of running a bed & breakfast & now the bed & breakfast has us running!!! That's ok though... we are loving it! If you get a chance checkout our website Shining Light Inn.

We are still working on finishing the backyard pond & waterfall, but we already have a resident living there... say "Hello!" to the pond frog... posing so nicely!

I just wanted to encourage you with a quick post to tell you... whatever you are going through... God is using it to strengthen your heart! Lean in to Him! He will not fail you!

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” ~ Romans 8:28

Safekeeping...

Just like most people... life has just been so busy! I have been neglecting my craft area in the house! Only doing what needs to be done "craft-wise" as the need approaches. I feel like a failure when it comes to relaxing with creativity! That has to change!!!

My hubby gave me a journal Bible for Valentine's Day... yes 2 months ago! I joined 2 different groups on FB where the ladies are expressing themselves & their faith in beautifully, creative ways! I want to do that too... but I've let fear of screwing up keep me from it... until now!

This morning I came across this verse: "You have kept a record of my wanderings. Put my tears in Your bottle. They are already in Your book." ~ Psalms 56:8  I knew this was the verse for me to stop procrastinating & put the image in my mind onto paper! So here it is...

I had to acknowledge verse 9... "God is for me." Verse 10... "Praise Him." Verse 11... "Trust Him" & "No fear."

It is very basic & simple... this is so out of my comfort zone! Please let me know what you think!

No Greater Love

No Greater Love from Coffee Cup Corner.